J  K 


UC-NRLF 


SB    22    MMS 


Si 


ILLUSTRATE;    OP    THE 


PRACTICAL   TENDENCIES 


i'BL.LlPLES,   ,".   rc]  INFLUENCES 


LEADING   MEN 


IN    TIIS    ORIGINATION    OF    THE 


M  K 11 1 C  A.  iN"      U  JS  ION 


AND    IN    III! 


FORMATION  AND  SUCCESSIVE  ADMINISTRATIONS 


THK  ( 


BY    THADD1U 


BOSTON 
HERS,    PR] 


C  0  R 


-J 


Digitized  by  the  Internet  Archive 

in  2007  with  funding  from 

Microsoft  Corporation 


http://www.archive.org/details/factsillustrativOOallerich 


FACTS 


ILLUSTRATIVE  OF  THE 


PRACTICAL  T     NDENCIES 


DISTINCTIVE  VIEWS,  PRINCIPLES,  AGENCIES,  AND  INFLUENCES 


LEADING    MEN 


IN  THE  ORIGINATION  OF  THE 


AMEEICAN    UNION, 


AND  IN  THE 


FORMATION  AND  SUCCESSIVE  ADMINISTRATIONS 


THE   GOVERNMENT, 


BY    THADDEUS    ALLEN,    A.M. 


TRUTH  OUR  AIM  :  FACTS  OUR  GUIDE. 


BOSTON: 
PRATT    BROTHERS,    PRINTERS,    37*    CORNHILL, 

1868. 


LAfc 


Entered,  according  to  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1868,  by 

THADDEUS  ALLEN, 

In  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  District  of  Massachusetts. 


-  . .  .  . 


FACTS  TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS.   IN   1866,  '67,  '68,   ETC. 


[Note.  —  These  first  eight  pages  were  prepared,  and  intended  to  be  published 
by  themselves,  in  I860.] 


In  this  year  of  our  Lord,  1866,  the  alarmingly  complicated 
derangements  in  the  vital  affairs  of  the  Nation,  and  the  con- 
flicting views  and  opinions  of  its  Rulers  respecting  their 
cause  and  their  remedy,  so  much  resemble  those  recorded  in 
the  latest  and  most  disheartening  years  of  the  Confederation, 
that  the  question  naturally  arises  —  a  question  now  of  special 
public  interest — whether  these  existing  derangements,  and 
those  so  recorded,  really  had,  as  they  appear  to  have  had, 
one  and  the  same  paternity  ;  and,  if  so,  when  and  in  what 
manner  were  first  manifested  the  agencies  and  influences 
which  caused  them  ? 

Considering  the  late  urgent  and  frequent  appeals  to  the 
people  of  the  United  States  to  maintain  and  preserve  the 
Constitution  as  it  is,  thus  assuming  it  to  be  perfect  in  all  its 
parts  ;  and  considering,  also,  that  those  appeals  are  made 
while  the  Government  —  administered  professedly  according 
to  its  sanctioned  provisions  —  is  in  so  unsettled  and  pre- 
carious a  condition  as  to  produce  deep  anxiety  and  agitation 
throughout  the  country,  it  seems  to  be  quite  time  to  inquire 
with  more  care  and  discrimination  into  the  origin  and  nature 
of  the  two  sections  in  that  incomparable  Charter  of  the 
Fathers,  which  relate  to  the  election  of  Representatives  to 
Congress. 

The  expediency  of  this  can  hardly  fail  to  be  perceived  by 
every  one  who  realizes  the  fact,  that  the  characteristic  ten- 
dency and  legitimate  results  of  the  transfer  of  national  power 
from  Congress  to  the  several  States,  by  those  two  Sections, 
are  now  being  clearly,  and,  to  many  at  least,  most  calami- 
tously illustrated  by  "  my  policy  "  in  the  administration  of 
the  Government. 

In  aid  of  the  inquiry  alluded  to,  it  may  be  stated  that,  on 
the  24th  of  July,  the  memorable  Convention  of  1787  appointed 
five  of  their  members  a  committee,  called  by  them  the  Com- 
mittee of  Detail,  to  more  suitably  arrange  their  "  proceedings 
for  the  establishment  of  a  National  Government." 

At  the  opening  of  their  business,  May  29th,  Mr.  Charles 
Pinckney,  of  South  Carolina,  offered  a  series  of  propositions 


2  FACTS   TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,    AS   THEIR 

in  a  form  similar  to  that  of  the  Constitution  ;  and,  on  the 
26th  of  July,  the  Convention  referred  those  propositions  of 
Mr.  Pjnckney,  together  with  their  previously  adopted  Reso- 
lutions, to  that  Committee  of  Detail  appointed  "  to  prepare 
and  report  a  Constitution  conformable  thereto.''  In  the 
twenty-three  Resolutions  so  referred,  the  following  is  all  that 
related  to  the  manner  of  electing  those  Representatives :  — 

"  Resolved,  That  the  first  branch  of  the  [National]  Legislature  ought 
to  be  elected  by  the  people  of  the  several  States,  for  the  term  of  two 
years." 

Below   are  the    propositions   of    Mr.   Pinckney    on    the 

subject. 

Article  III.  —  M  The  members  of  the  House  of  Delegates  [Representa- 
tives]   shall   be   chosen   every year    by   the    people   of  the  several 

States,  and  the  qualifications  of  electors  shall  be  the  same  as  those  of  the 
electors  in  the  several  States  for  their  Legislatures." 

Article  V.  —  "  Each  State  shall  prescribe  the  time  and  manner  of  hold- 
ing elections  by  the  people  for  the  House  of  Delegates  [Representatives]." 

Next  are  those  two  Sections  in  the  Constitution. 

Article  I.,  Section  2d.  —  "  The  House  of  Representatives  shall  be  com- 
posed of  members  chosen  every  second  year,  by  the  people  of  the  several 
States  ;  and  the  electors  in  each  State  shall  have  the  qualifications  requi- 
site for  electors  of  the  most  numerous  branch  of  the  State  Legislature." 

Section  4th,  of  the  same  Article. — "The  times,  places,  and  manner  of 
holding  elections  for  Senators  and  Representatives,  shall  be  prescribed  in 
each  State  by  the  Legislature  thereof;  but  the  Congress  may  at  any  time, 
by  law,  make  or  alter  such  regulations,  except  as  to  the  place  of  choosing 
Senators." 

If  these  twTo  sections  are  accurately  compared  with  the 
above  Resolution,  and  with  Mr.  Pinckney's  Articles  (3d  and 
5th),  there  could  seemingly  be  little  doubt  in  what  quarter 
their  objectionable  features  originated.  Mr.  Rutledge,  like- 
wise of  South  Carolina,  was  a  member  of  that  Committee  of 
Detail.     They  delivered  in  their  Report,  August  6th. 

When  the  last  clause  of  Section  4th  was  taken  up  in  the 
Convention  (the  clause  appended  by  the  Committee  to  Mr. 
Pinckney's  Article  5th),  "  Mr.  Pinckney  and  Mr.  Rutledge 
moved  to  strike  it  out.  The  States,  they  contended,  could 
and  must  be  relied  on  in  such  cases." 

If  these  immediately  preceding  facts  are  considered  jointly 
with  the  result  of  such  comparison,  there  could  seem  to 
remain  no  doubt  that  those  objectionable  features  originated 
in  the  deep-seated  and  too  lasting  jealousies  and  prejudices  of 
the  notoriously  erratic  State  of  South  Carolina.  Had  their 
consequences  been  limited  to  that  period  of  time,  and  to  the 
comparatively  unimportant  territory  of  that  single  State,  it 
would  have  been  a  matter  of  little  interest  to  the  great 
American  Republic,  to  trace  those  consequences  ;  but  since 
they  have  not  only  continued,  but  so  increased  and  pre- 
vailed   through    the    whole  Southern   portion  of   the  Union, 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  3 

and  still  exist  by  far  too  extensively  in  the  Northern,  it 
seems  a  matter  of  general  interest,  to  direct  attention  to  the 
manner  in  which  some  of  the  other  members  of  that  Conven- 
tion, then  representing  a  majority  of  the  people,  regarded  the 
tendency  of  those  two  Sections,  even  as  they  were  suffered 
to  stand  in  the  Constitution 

As  already  mentioned,  the  Committee  of  Detail  reported 
to  the  Convention,  August  6th. 

August  1th.  —  Section  2d,  requiring  that  "  the  electors  in 
each  State  shall  have  the  qualifications  requisite  for  electors 
of  the  most  numerous  branch  of  the  State  Legislature/'  being 
taken  up,  the  member  who  reported  it  argued,  that  "  it  was 
difficult  to  form  any  uniform  rule  of  qualifications  for  the 
States.  Unnecessary  innovations,  he  thought,  too,  should  be 
avoided."  « 

Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  [of  Pennsylvania],  after  answering 
the  arguments  used  in  support  of  it,  added,  "  Another  objec- 
tion against  the  clause,  as  it  stands,  is,  that  it  makes  the  qualifi- 
cations for  the  National  Legislature  depend  on  the  will  of  the 
States,  which  he  thought  not  proper." 

August  8th.  —  The  Convention  taking  up  the  part  of  Sec- 
tion 2d  concerning  the  prerequisite  residence  for  a  member 
of  the  House  of  Representatives,  "  Mr.  Rutledge  urged 
and  moved  that  a  residence  of  seven  years  should  be  required 
in  the  State  wherein  the  member  should  be  elected.  An 
emigrant  from  New  England  to  South  Carolina  or  Georgia 
could  know  little  of  its  affairs,  and  could  not  be  supposed 
to  acquire  a  thorough  knowledge,  in  less   time." 

"  Mr.  George  Read  [of  Delaware]  reminded  him  that  we 
were  now  forming  a  National  Government,  and  that  such  a 
regulation  would  correspond  little  with  the  idea  that  we 
were  one  people." 

"  Mr.  James  Wilson  [of  Pennsylvania]  enforced  the  same 
consideration." 

Mr.  John  Francis  Mercer*  [of  Maryland].  —  "Such  a 
regulation  would  present  a  greater  alienship  than  existed 
under  the  old  Federal  system.  It  would  interweave  local 
jealousies  and  State  distinctions  in  the  very  Constitution 
which  is  meant  to  cure  them." 

August  dth.  —  It  was  on  that  day  that  Section  4th,  respect- 
ing "  The  times,  places,  etc.,  came  under  consideration,  as 
mentioned  before,  when  Mr.  Pinckney  and  Mr.  Rutledge 
moved  to  strike  out  the  last  clause,  contending  that  the 
States  "  could  and  must  be  relied  on  in  such  cases." 

Mr.  Nathaniel  Gorham  [of  Massachusetts].  —  "  It  would 
be  as  improper  to  take  this  power  from  the  National  Legisla- 
ture as    to   restrain  the  British  Parliament  from  regulating 

*  Mr.  Mercer  took  his  seat  in  the  Convention,  Aug.  6th. 


AS   THEIR 

the  circumstances  of  elections,  leaving  this  business  to  the 
counties  themselves." 

Mr.  James  Madison1  [of  Virginia].  —  "The  necessity  of  a 

•General  Government seems   to    decide  that  the 

Legislatures  of  the  States  ought  not  to  have  the  uncontrolled 
•right  of  regulating  the  times,  places,  and  manner,  of  holding 
elections.  These  were  words  of  great  latitude.  It  was  im- 
possible to  foresee  all  the  abuses  that  might  be  made  of  such 

discretionary  power  [in  the  States] It  seemed 

as  improper  in  principle,  though  it  might  be  less  inconven- 
ient in  practice,  to  give  to  the  State  Legislatures  this  great 
authority  over  the  election  of  the  Representatives  of  the  peo- 
ple in  the  General  Legislature,  as  it  would  be  to  give  to  the 
latter  a  like  power  over  the  election  of  their  Representatives 
in  the  State  Legislature."  $ 

Mr.  Rufus  King  [of  Massachusetts].  —  "If  this  power  be 
not  given  to  the  National  Legislature,  their  right  of  judging 
of  the  returns  of  their  members  may  be  frustrated.  .  .  . 
Although  the  scheme  of  erecting  the  General  Government 
on  the  authority  of  the  State  Legislatures  has  been  fatal 
to  the  Federal  establishment,  it  would  seem  as  if  many  gen- 
tlemen still  fostered  the  dangerous  idea." 

The  above  extracts  from  Mr.  Madison's  "  Journal  of  De- 
bates in  the  Convention  "  indicate  clearly  that  both  classes 
of  the  members  equally  considered  the  Legislative,  as  the 
department  of  Government  to  be  possessed  of  the  entire 
and  exclusive  authority  over  those  elections.  On  that  sub- 
ject, therefore,  the  only  question  between  them  was,  whether 
that  authority  should  be  vested  in  the  National  Legislature, 
to  secure  the  requisite  uniformity  through  all  parts  of  the 
Union ;  or  whether  the  conditions  of  those  elections  should 
be  subjected  to  the  control  of  the  discordant  jealousies  and 
prejudices  of  the  several  State  Legislatures. 

Thus,  the  issue  between  them  appears  to  have  been  of  the 
same  nature  as  that  now  pending  between  Congress  and  the 
President,  —  the  same  as  was  manifested  through  the  whole 
course  of  the  debates  in  the  Convention, —  and,  indeed,  of 
the  same  nature  as  that  which  has  in  varied  degrees  dis- 
turbed and  agitated  the  Republic,  from  the  autumn  of  1775, 
to  the  present  time. 

Who  can  tell  the  number  or  amount  of  the  wide-spread- 
ing evils  which  have  been  experienced  in  that  period,  from 
the  excess  of  power  in  the  States,  acquired  principally  by 
their  own  assumptions,  but  in  no  small  measure  by  the  too 
great  concessions  to  them  in  parts  of  the  Constitution? 

Fortunately,  Congress  have  so  perceived  some  of  those 
evils,  now  most  imminent,  that  they  have  attempted  the  only 
effectual  remedy,  by  proposing  a  necessary  amendment  to 
the    time-honored  Charter  of  National  Freedom. 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  5 

That  such  a  measure  has  become  necessary,  can  admit  of 
no  fair  question  or  doubt,  when  we  consider  the  above  two 
sections  in  the  Constitution  with  reference  to  a  peculiar 
policy  recently  adopted  to  restore  to  their  former  relations  in 
the  Union  the  people  of  the  territory  lately  in  rebellion 
against  the  nation. 

Without  some  preliminary  measure  to  effectually  prevent 
further  mischiefs  from  those  two  sections,  an  attempt  to  bring 
them  into  the  Union  by  the  action  of  those  artificial  beings 
called  States,  —  as  they  went  out,  —  rather  than  by  the  action 
of  the  loyal  portion  of  the  inhabitants  of  that  territory,  would 
be  virtually  an  attempt  to  surrender  to  the  States  the  power 
and  duty  of  the  National  Government  to  defend  and  protect 
those  inhabitants,  and  thereby  to  expose  them  to  whatever 
persecutions  and  cruelties  their  treasonable  neighbors  and 
State  Legislatures  might  be  prompted  to  inflict  upon  them. 
It  would  be,  moreover,  at  once  to  relinquish  all  the  security 
that  has  been  gained  by  the  immense  sacrifices  of  blood  and 
treasure  in  the  war,  and  to  renew  the  liability  to  a  repetition 
of  like  calamities  in  future. 

Few  as  are  the  preceding  extracts  from  the  debates,  they 
indicate  the  too  generally  unregarded  fact,  that  in  1787,  as 
well  as  before  and  since,  there  were  in  the  United  States  two 
distinct  classes  of  patriotic  statesmen,  —  early  divided  from 
each  other  by  their  different  conceptions  as  to  the  kind  of 
principle  whereon  to  form  a  plan  or  system  of  government, 
and  of  all  general  operations,  either  civil  or  military,  best 
calculated  to  meet  the  various  accumulating  new  and  untried 
exigencies,  all  of  which  they  had  been  selected  to  provide 
for. 

They  indicate  no  less  intelligibly,  also,  that  the  members 
of  one  of  those  classes  directed  their  attention  and  care  chief- 
ly to  local  or  State  concerns,  and  earnestly  and  too  success- 
fully labored  to  transfer  to  the  States  essential  powers  which 
the  general  welfare  required  to  be  possessed  and  exercised 
by  the  National  Government;  and  that  the  other  class, — 
whether  in  or  out  of  the  convention,  —  while  recognizing  the 
importance  of  State  authorities,  regarded  them  as  subordinate 
and  auxiliary  to  the  infiuitely  more  important  whole ;  and, 
accordingly,  believing  the  substantial  interests  of  the  States 
to  be  best  provided  for  by  securing  the  interests  of  the  peo- 
ple composing  them,  they  exerted  strenuously  and  persever- 
ingly  their  utmost  energies  for  the  establishment  of  a  National 
Government,  of  adequate  efficacy,  stability,  and  permanency, 
to  secure  the  peace  and  freedom  of  all  the  people  in  all  the 
States. 

The  records  show,  that  the  principle  of  this  latter  class  was 
adopted  as  fundamental  in  the  formation  of  the  Union,  in 
1774;  that  it  was  observed  as  the  basis  of  all  plans  of  opera- 
tion in  the  military  department  during  the  war  for  Independ- 


6  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

ence ;  and  that  the  wisest,  ablest,  and  most  experienced 
statesmen  of  that  period,  regarded  it  as  the  true  principle  of 
the  Union  and  Government,  till  the  close  of  their  lives  It  is 
likewise  shown  hy  the  records,  that  the  principle  of  the  for- 
mer class,  the  class  above  represented  by  Mr.  Pinckney  and 
Mr.  Rutledge,  was  first  publicly  manifested  in  the  autumn  of 
1775  ;  that  it  originated  in  the  peculiar  conceptions  of  a  few 
then  leading  members  of  Congress,  whose  mental  bias  and 
prejudice  prompted  them  to  renounce  the  principle  of  Union 
on  which  they  had  unitedly  begun,  and,  thus  seceding  from 
their  colleagues,  to  adopt  as  the  basis  of  their  system,  a  prin- 
ciple far  different  in  its  stead.  That  was  the  first  actual 
secession  in  the  United  States,  and  the  first  practical  applica- 
tion of  the  principle  on  which  has  since  been  claimed  a  right 
of  nullification  and  secession. 

That  justly  celebrated  band  of  Patriots  was  in  that  manner 
sundered  into  two  political  classes  or  parties. 

Thenceforward,  for  years,  there  were  practically  employed 
in  conducting  public  operations  two  distinct  systems,  which 
were  soon  found  to  be  —  and  they  continued  so  to  be  through 
the  stupendous  war  of  Revolution  — as  widely  divergent  in 
tendency  as  they  were  palpably  different  in  principle. 

It  should  be  observed  that  each  of  those  principles  was 
applied  in  directing  public  affairs  —  one  in  the  military,  the 
other  in  the  civil  department —  long  before  the  theory  founded 
en  either  of  them  was  formed  into  a  system  of  government. 

The  one  thus  and  then  adopted  prevailed  in  the  adminis- 
tration of  those  affairs  in  the  civil  department,  from  that  time 
till  the  organization  of  the  government  under  the  Constitu- 
tion, in  1789. 

The  speedily  resulting  derangements,  extending  to  every 
public  department,  and  almost  continually  increasing  to  their 
consummation  in  the  awfully  anarchical  condition  of  the  coun- 
try in  1787,  so  thoroughly  convinced  the  people  of  the  radi- 
cal defect  and  perilous  tendency  of  the  system,  that  a  major- 
ity of  them  firmly  resolved  to  abandon  altogether  the  principle 
on  which  it  had  been  founded,  and  to  substitute  the  principle 
of  the  other  system.  For  that  purpose  thaj  called  forth 
those  ever  memorable  benefactors,  who  had  been  first  and 
foremost  in  achieving  Independence,  as  the  class  most  reli- 
able for  counsel  and  guidance,  and  most  competent  to  regu- 
late and  secure  the  freedom  which  they  had  so  nobly  won  ; 
and  the  event  proved  the  wisdom  of  their  course. 

Opposed  in  the  Convention  as  in  the  war  of  Revolution,  by 
a  class  numerically  scarcely  less  than  their  own,  that  now 
imperfectly  appreciated  class  whose  chief  was  Washington, 
by  oft-repeated  and  persistent  efforts  during  more  than  three 
months,  so  far  succeeded,  in  spite  of  such  opposition,  as  to 
restore  to  the  Union  the  amount  of  self-sustaining  and  con- 
servative power  there  is  in  the  Constitution. 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  7 

Called  afterward  to  administer  the  government  which  they 
had  so  largely  contributed  to  form  and  establish,  they  u  as  by 
magic w  raised  the  then  existing  generation  from  the  very 
verge  of  bewildering  anarchy  to  a  condition  of  peace,  order, 
and  prosperity. 

So  then,  as  always,  the  direct  tendency  of  the  former  sys- 
tem was,  to  disarrange  and  subvert ;  that  of  the  latter,  to 
regulate  and  establish.  These  truths  the  people  of  that 
period  thoroughly  and  practically  learned,  by  their  impres- 
sive experiences  of  the  opposite  results  from  the  two  sys- 
tems; and,  in  so  learning  them,  they  learned  what  counsels 
and  examples  to  confide  in  and  follow,  and  what  to  distrust 
and  avoid.  Unutterably  fortunate  it  was  for  themselves,  and 
for  the  successive  generations  after  them,  that  they  at  the 
same  time  learned  how  to  relieve  and  save  their  then  greatly 
depressed  and  imperiled  country. 

Much  as  it  should  be  regretted,  the  main  facts,  especially 
those  relating  to  that  period,  have  been  so  perverted  or  ob- 
scured by  many  writers  and  speakers  respecting  the  nature 
and  formation  of  the  American  Union  and  Government,  that 
only  through  the  original  records  can  be  obtained  the  prac- 
tical knowledge  of  those  experiences,  which  guided  the  peo- 
ple so  well  then,  and  which  is  exceedingly  needful,  if  not 
indispensable,  to  guide  the  people  as  well  now,  in  1866. 

Viewing  the  foregoing  facts  in  connection  with  the  re- 
markable political  experiences  of  this  year,  and  of  sev- 
eral preceding  years,  it  would  seem  that  intelligent  patriot- 
ism might  be  prompted  to  more  efficient  and  persevering  en- 
deavors to  distinguish  the  respective  agencies  and  influences 
of  the  two  classes,  and  their  respective  bearings  upon  the 
great  interests  of  the   country. 

But  few  seem  to  know,  or  care  to  inquire,  whether  the 
Government  of  the  United  States  has  been  administered 
by  Franklin  Pierce,  James  Buchanan,  and  Andrew  John- 
son, more  in  accordance  with  the  true,  original  principle 
of  the  Union  and  the  Constitution,  than  with  that  of  the  pre- 
vious system,  called  the  Confederation  ;  or,  in  other  words, 
whether  it  has  been  administered  by  them  more  in  accord- 
ance with  the  political  theory  of  George  Washington  than 
with  that  of  Thomas  Jefferson. 

However  regarded,  here  is  suggested  a  distinction,  on 
the  observance  of  which  depend,  as  hitherto  and  ever,  the 
vital  interests,  the  peace,  the  security  and  prosperity  of 
the  American  nation.  It  is  a  distinction  which  every  one 
in  a  position  of  influence  in  the  Government  ought  to  be  able 
to  promptly  and  truly  define.  No  American  statesman  or 
citizen  should  pretend  to  possess  a  practical  knowledge  of 
the  political  history  of  his  country,  unless  he  has  accurately 
lo  iiiiod  the  distinctive  tendency  of  each  of  those  theories, 
as    that  tendency  has    been  developed    by  its  results  in  the 


8  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

successive  generations  since  the  commencement  of  the 
Union.  As  long  as  he  is  unable  to  so  mark  those  tenden- 
cies respectively,  as  to  clearly  distinguish  each  from  the 
other,  so  long  the  plain  teachings  of  his  nation's  varied  ex- 
periences will  appear  to  him  confused  and  unintelligible,  and, 
therefore,  afford  no  practical  guidance. 

Pending  the  preposterous  war  of  rebellion,  its  horrors 
were  greatly  alleviated  in  the  minds  of  the  very  many,  who 
confidently  anticipated  as  a  consequence  the  long-needed 
correction  of  that  radical  error  in  the  public  sentiment  of 
the  people,  and  in  the  public  measures  of  their  rulers,  which, 
stealthily  increasing  and  advancing,  had  given  birth  to  the 
attempt  of  a  State  to  nullify  laws  of  the  United  States,  and, 
remaining  still  uncorrected,  had  at  length  misled  a  confiding 
nation  even  to  a  condition  so  terrific  and  calamitous. 

But  the  multiplied  complications  in  the  vastly  momentous 
concerns  of  the  country  since  the  close  of  actual  war,  and 
some  of  the  schemes  proposed  for  regulating  and  adjusting 
them,  indicate  too  plainly  that  such  anticipations  are  yet  far 
from  being  realized,  and  that  there  is  now  no  little  occasion 
for  a  renewal  of  the  knowledge  and  application  of  those  les- 
sons of  warning  as  well  as  of  encouragement,  which  were  so 
thoroughly  and  practically  learned  from  the  widely-different 
experiences  in  the  first  quarter  of  a  century  from  the  nation's 
beginning, —  that  fundamental  period  of  American  institutions. 

Those  different  or  rather  opposite  experiences,  considered 
then  as  the  unmistakable  evidences  of  the  specific  tendency 
of  the  theory  or  principle  from  which  they  respectively  result- 
ed, were  regarded  by  that  generation  as  the  true  and  infalli- 
ble lessons  for  political  guidance,  not  only  in  that  period  but 
in  all  the  subsequent  periods  of  independent  America. 

Those  lessons,  however,  are  not  imparted  or  acquired  by 
now  and  then  quoting  indiscriminately  some  of  those  memo- 
rable men,  wffo  collectively  are  justly  regarded  as  Fathers 
of  the  Revolution.  Indiscriminate  references  to  those  fa- 
thers must  appear  of  little  significance  to  every  one  who 
knows  the  fact,  that,  on  a  near  view  of  an  absolute  and  final 
separation  from  Great  Britain,  no  inconsiderable  number  of 
them,  from  their  peculiar  mental  bias  and  temperament,  as 
already  shown,  renounced  the  national  principle  on  which 
they  had  all  begun,  and  adopted  another.  ^Adequate  knowl- 
edge of  those  lessons  is  possessed  by  only  those  who  have 
correctly  learned  the  distinctive  tendency  of  each  of  those 
principles,  which  those  two  classes  of  patriots,  whether  in  the 
cabinet  or  field,  respectively  adopted  as  its  peculiar  basis  of 
every  public  arrangement. 

May  the  people  gain  such  knowledge  from  the  original 
records  to  be  found  in  subsequent  pages,  and  then  practically 
apply  it  as  wisely  for  present  and  future  exigencies  as  did 
the  generation  of  that  period. f 

*  See  page  G.  t  See  page  7. 


But  the  increased  and  still  increasing  complications  in 
national  affairs,  in  1867,  '68,  and  the  no  less  conflicting  opin- 
ions and  plans  for  regulating  and  adjusting  them,  when  viewed 
with  reference  to  the  seemingly  unnoticed  cause  from  which 
they  mainly  proceeded,  appear  to  afford  little  prospect  "of~~ 
enduring  advance  in  that  direction,  till  the  people  and  their 
rulers  so  learn  the  distinctive  character  of  the  agencies  and 
influences  of  the  several  leading  men  in  the  birth-period  of 
the  Nation,  that  they  may  be  enabled  to  fully  and  practically 
understand  how  those  renowned  patriots  respectively  affected 
the  nature  of  the  Union,  —  whether  for  good,  or  whether  for 
evil, —  first,  in  the  various  stages  of  the  Revolution,  then  in 
the  formation  of  the  Constitution,  and  again  in  the  adminis- 
tration of  the  Government. 

To  be  satisfied  of  the  infinite  importance  of  possessing  and 
disseminating  such  knowledge  throughout  every  section  of 
the  country,  requires  only  to  adequately  conceive  how  clearly 
the  widely  different  political  views  and  influences,  which 
agitate  the  nation  so  deeply  now,  are  traceable  to  their  origin 
and  their  respective  authors  in  that  period  wherein  so  vastly 
diverse  plans  of  general  operations  were  formed. 

That  the  same  influences,  unchanged  in  character,  though 
successively  varied  in  relative  degrees,  have  descended 
through  the  generations,  to  the  present  time,  cannot  be  truth- 
fully denied  or  reasonably  doubted. 

The  great  misfortune  has  been,  that  those  tending  to  dis- 
turb, disorganize,  and  unsettle,  have  too  often  and  too  much 
prevailed  over  those  which  invariably  tend  to  tranquillize, 
regulate,  and  establish. 

In  this  connection,  some  may  recollect  the  significant  fact, 
that,  both  during  the  still-oontinued  precarious  condition  of 
the  nation,  and  through  the  long  course  of  influences  and 
events  which  led  to  it,  not  only  reputed  politicians,  but 
respected  orators,  editors,  and  even  honored  historians  and 
biographers,  have  repeatedly  and  most  emphatically  cited,  as 
model  Statesmen,  some  of  the  most  prominent  members  of 
that  class  of  the  fathers,  who  have  been  twice  referred  to  as 
the  authors  of  that  system,*  which  twelve  years'  experience 
of  its  legitimate  results  taught  the  people  of  1787  to  entirely 
abandon  and  repudiate,  as  constantly  tending  to  political 
confusion  and  disaster. 

Though  so  much  to  be  lamented,  such  radically  misguiding 
exhibitions  will  excite  little  wonder,  so  far  as  the  fact  is 
known  and  considered,  that,  mainly  for  prudential  reasons, 
which  will  appear  in  these  pages,  the  most  essential  truths 
relating  to  that  period  were  never  so  clearly  and  fully 
explained,  as  to  be  practically  understood  by  even  the  gen- 
eration which  next  succeeded  it. 

Hence,  in  very  many  of  the  writings  and  speeches  on  the 

*  See  pages  6  and  7. 


10  FACTS   TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,   AS   THEIR 

subject,  —  especially  in  the  latter  portion  of  them,  —  errcr 
is  so  extensively  blended  with  the  most  important  truths,  or 
those  truths  are  so  partially  presented  —  often  quite  per- 
verted—  that,  practically,  as  regards  the  distinctive  counsels 
and  examples  of  those  two  classes  of  Statesmen,  the  last  has 
too  nearly  become  the  first ;  and  the  first,  last. 

In  view  of  these  truths,  it  would  seem,  that  both  justice  to 
them,  and  a  due  regard  for  the  present  and  future  interests 
of  the  nation,  demand  a  more  discriminate  and  thorough 
knowledge  of  their  respective  agencies  and  influences  as  the 
records  show  them.  Toward  this  necessary  attainment,  the 
first  lesson  to  be  learned,  is,  that  those  two  classes  were  sev- 
erally characterized  by  the  particular  principle  of  the  system 
of  operations  which  they  respectively  originated  or  persist- 
ently advocated;  for  it  is  only  by  previously  learning  their 
characteristics,  as  thus  distinguished  from  each  other,  that 
those  of  their  respective  followers,  in  this  or  in  any  other  period 
subsequent  to  that  first,  can  be  so  clearly  distinguished  as  to 
afford  the  practical  guidance  which  has  long  been  needed 
—  and  which  is  now  especially  needed  —  for  extricating  the 
great  affairs  of  the  nation  from  their  present  alarmingly  mul- 
tiplied derangements  and  difficulties. 

Yet,  pressing  as  are  the  various  exigencies  of  those  affairs, 
few  if  any  seem  to  know  there  was  ever  such  an  event  as 
that  division  among  the  country's  chosen  Guardians,  men- 
tioned in  the  preceding  pages  (6th  and  7th).  That  event, 
however,  occurring  at  so  early  and  critical  a  stage  of  the 
Revolution,  —  and  involving,  at  the  same  time,  an  entire  de- 
parture from  the  principle  on  which  the  public  operations  had 
been  from  the  beginning  to  that  time  directed,  —  was  produc- 
tive of  consequences,  which,  in  magnitude  and  extent,  have 
greatly  exceeded  those  of  any  other  political  event  in  the 
whole  history  of  the  Union. 

By  it,  as  has  been  shown,  that  august  Assembly  was  sun- 
dered into  two  political  classes  or  parties.  Although  appar- 
ently unknown,  or  unt  nought  of,  for  many  years  past,  the 
political  distinction  thus  and  then  originated  was  thencefor- 
ward carefully  observed  by  each  party,  as  of  such  vital  impor- 
tance for  the  salvation  of  the  country,  that  it  was  the  very 
pivot  on  which  were  suspended  all  the  political  vibrations 
during  a  half  century,  from  the  firSt  public  manifestation  of 
it  in  the  autumn  of  1775. 

As  that  division  among  them  arose  entirely  from  their  dif- 
ferent views  and  plans  for  meeting  occasions  which  were 
then  all  new  to  them,  it  would  seem  reasonable  to  suppose 
them  to  have  been  at  that  time  equally  honest  and  patriotic ; 
but  the  widely  variant  practical  tendencies  and  results  of 
their  different  plans  soon  indicated,  and  prolonged  experience 
has  fully  proved,  that  those  two  classes  were  far  from  being 
equally  sagacious  and  wise  in  directing  their  endeavors  to 


ANCESTORS  WERE   GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  11 

provide  for  the  permanent  freedom  and  welfare  of  their 
country. 

The  following  extracts  are  referred  to,  as  affording  some 
just  idea  of  the  circumstances,  nature,  and  extent  of  the  earli- 
est portion  of  the  consequences  experienced  from  tint  divi- 
sion :  — 

General  Greene  wrote  to  Gov.  "Ward,  in  Congress,  Oct.  16,  1775,  — 
"  With  regard  to  paying  the  troops  part  of  their  wages,  and  the  Commit- 
tee part,  it  will  be  productive  of  a  multitude  of  inconveniences 

As  the  troops  are  considered  Continental,  and  not  Colonial,  there  must  be 
some  systematical  plan  for  the  payment,  without  reference  to  any  particu- 
lar Colonies. 

"  His  Excellency  has  a  great  desire  to  banish  every  idea  of  local  attach- 
ments.    .     .     .     fror  my  part,  I  feel  the  cause,  and  not  the  place." 

Hon.  Thomas  Lynch,  in  Congress,  to  General  Washington,  Nov.,  1775. 
—  "With  grief  and  shame,  it  must  be  confessed,  that  the  whole  blame 
lies  not  with  the  army.  You  will  find  your  hands  straitened  instead 
of  strengthened.  What  the  event  will  be,  it  is  impossible  to  foresee ;  per- 
haps it  is  only  intended  to  force  the  Continent  into  their  own  terms,  and 
to  show  that  neither  General  nor  Congress  [but  the  Colonies]  shall  be  per- 
mitted to  control  the  army." 

General  Washington,  to  Colonel  Read,  Nov.  28, 1775.  —  "  Could  I  have 
foreseen  what  I  have  experienced,  and  am  likely  to  experience,  no  consid- 
eration upon  earth  should  have  induced  me  to  accept  this  command." 

General  Washington,  to  the  President  of  Congress,  Dec.  14,  1775.  — 
"  The  resolves  relative  to  captures  made  by  Continental  arme,d  vessels,  only 
want  a  court  established  for  trial  to  make  them  complete.  This  I  hope 
will  soon  be  done,  as  I  have  taken  the  liberty  to  urge  it  often  to  the  Con- 
gress." 

Yet,  on  the  20th,  Congress  passed  the  resolve,  that  such 
cases  should  be  libelled  in  the  Courts  of  Admiralty  erected  in 
the  Colonies. 

General  Greene,  to  Governor  Ward,  in  Congress,  Dec.  31,  1775. — 
"  How  unhappy  for  the  interests  of  America,  that  such  colonial  prejudices 
should  prevail,  and  partial  motives  influence  her  councils !  If  they  are 
nourished,  they  will  sooner  or  later  sap  the  foundation  of  the  Union.  .  . 
God  in  mercy  avert  so  dreadful  an  evil." 

General  Washington,  to  the  President  of  Congress,  Sept.  24,  1776.  — 
"  The  wounds  which  my  feelings,  as  an  officer,  have  received  by  a  thousand 
things  that  have  happened,  contrary  to  my  expectations  and  wishes,  .  .  . 
added  to  a  consciousness  of  my  inability  to  govern  an  army  composed  of 
such  discordant  parts,  —  induce  not  only  the  belief,  but  a  thorough  con- 
viction in  my  mind,  that  it  will  be  impossible,. unless  there  is  a  thorough 
change  in  our  military  system,  for  me  to  conduct  matters  in  such  a  man- 
ner as  to  give  satisfaction  to  the  public." 

General  Greene,  to ,  Sept.  28,  1776.  —  "  The  policy  of  Congress 

has  been  the  most  absurd  and  ridiculous  imaginable.  ...  A  military 
force  established  upon  such  principles  defeats  itself.  ...  The  Con- 
gress goes  upon  a  penurious  plan." 

General  Washington,  to  the  President  of  Congress,  Oct.  4,  1776. — 
"And  I  see  such  a  distrust  and  jealousy  of  military  power,  that  the  Com- 
mander-in-Chief has  not  an  opportunity,  even  by  recommendation,  to  give 
the  least  assurances  of  reward  for  the  most  essential  services.  In  a  word, 
such  a  cloud  of  perplexing  circumstances  appears  before  me,  without  one 
flattering  hope,  that  I  am  thoroughly  convinced  that  unless  the  most  vig- 
orous and  decisive  exertions  are  immediately  adopted  to  remedy  these 
evils.,  the  certain  and  absolute  los3  of  our  liberties  will  be  the  inevitable 
consequence." 


12 

The  eccentric  General  Charles  Lee,  to  General  Gates,  Oct.  14, 1776.  — 
"  Inter  nos,  Congress  seem  to  stumble  at  every  step.  .  .  .  General 
Washington  is  much  to  blame  in  not  menacing  them  with  resignation, 
unless  they  refrain  from  unhinging  the  army  by  their  absurd  interference." 

General  Washington,  to  J.  A.  Washington,  Nov.  19,  1776.  —  "I  am 
wearied  almost  to  death  with  the  retrograde  motion  of  things,  and  sol- 
emnly protest,  that  a  pecuniary  reward  of  twenty  thousand  pounds  a  year 
would  not  induce  me  to  undergo  what  I  do  ;  and,  after  all,  perhaps  to  lose 
my  character,  as  it  is  impossible,  under  such  a  variety  of  distressing  cir- 
cumstances, to  conduct  matters  agreeably  to  public  expectation,  or  even  to 
the  expectation  of  those  [Congress]  who  employ  me,  as  they  will  not  make 
proper  allowances  for  the  difficulties  their  own  errors  have  occasioned." 

Same,  to  the  President  of  Congress,  Dec.  20,  1776.  —  "  I  can  only  add, 
that  desperate  diseases  require  desperate  remedies.  .  .  .  My  feelings, 
as  an  officer  and  a  man,  have  been  such  as  to  force  me  to  say,  that  no  per- 
son ever  had  a  greater  choice  of  difficulties  to  contend  with  than  I  have. 

"  That  I  have  labored,  ever  since  I  have  been  in  the  service,  to  discour- 
age all  kinds  of  local  attachments  and , distinctions  of  country,  denomina- 
ting the  whole  by  the  greater  name  of  American.  But  I  have  found  it 
impossible  to  overcome  prejudices." 

Robert  Morris,  in  Congress,  to  General  Washington,  Dec.  23,  1776. — 
"  It  is  useless,  at  this  period,  to  examine  into  the  causes  of  our  present 
unhappy  situation,  unless  that  examination  would  be  productive  of  a  cure 
for  the  evils  which  surround  us.  In  fact,  those  causes  have  long  been 
known  to  such  as  would  open  their  eyes.  The  very  consequences  of  them 
were  foretold,  and  the  measures  execrated,  by  some  of  the  best  friends  of 
America  ;  but  in  vain,  .  .  .  and  nothing  is  now  left  but  to  extricate 
ourselves  as  well  as  we  can." 

Thus  are  indicated,  in  the  language  of  some  of  those  who 
best  knew  and  most  deeply  felt  them,  a  portion  of  the  early- 
consequences  of  that  substitution  of  a  wholly  different  prin- 
ciple of  plan  for  directing  public  affairs,  at  so  critical  and 
momentous  a  juncture. 

It  is  proper  to  notice,  that,  to  the  extent  indicated  by  the 
preceding  extracts,  those  consequences  became  embarrass- 
ing, and  imperiling  throughout  both  the  civil  and  military 
departments,  in  little  more  than  one  year  after  that  most 
extraordinary  change  (or  reverse)  of  public  policy. 

As  may  have  been  already  inferred,  that  change  was  a 
natural  result  of  the  excessive  State  attachment,  State  jeal- 
ousy and  prejudice,  of  a  few  then  leading  members  of  Con- 
gress. By  their  influence,  at  the  time,  that  venerated 
Council  were  induced  to  adopt  the  new  principle  as  the  rule 
of  their  proceedings,  and,  in  1776,  to  erect  upon  it  that 
impracticable  structure  called  the  Confederation,  —  the  sys- 
tem of  government  formed  by  Congress  to  achieve,  and 
to  render  perpetually  secure,  the  independence,  freedom, 
harmony,  and  prosperity,  of  all  the  people  comprehended  in 
the  American  Union. 

Accordingly,  as  that  system  and  all  the  proceedings  of 
Congress  were  based  on  the  same  State  or  Confederate 
principle,  the  direction  of  public  affairg,  in  the  civil  depart- 
ment, was,  from  that  juncture,  little  affected  or  varied,  either 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88.  »89.  13 

by  the  Declaration  of  Independence,  by  the  completion  of 
the  form  of  that  system,  in  November,  1777,  or  by  the  final 
acceptance  and  ratification  of  it,  in  March,  1781.  Indeed, 
the  same  general  direction  was  continued  by  Congress  till 
the  necessity  for  the  Constitutional  Convention  of  1787  be- 
came manifest  to  all,  and  to  none  more  so  than  to  Congress 
themselves. 

The  evidences  of  some  of  the  later  consequences  of  that 
change  are  found  in  the  following  extracts :  — 

General  Greene,  to ,  June  4,  1777.  —  "Wisdom  and  prudence 

sometimes  forsake  the  wisest  bodies.  I  am  exceedingly  distressed  at  the 
state  of  things  in  the  great  National  Council." 

General  Washington,  to  R.  H.  Lee,  in  Congress,  Oct.  17,  1777.  —  "  To 
sum  up  the  whole,  I  hare  been  a  slave  to  the  service.  I  have  undergone 
more  than  most  men  are  aware  of,  to  harmonize  so  many  discordant  parts." 

General  Washington,  to  Benjamin  Harrison,  in  the  House  of  Dele- 
gates, Va.,  Dec.  18,  1778.  —  "My  conception  of  the  matter  impresses  it 
too  strongly  upon  me  that  the  States,  separately,  are  too  much  engaged 
in  their  local  concerns.  ...  In  a  word,  I  think  our  political  system 
may  be  compared  to  the  mechanism  of  a  clock,  and  that  we  should  derive 
a  lesson  from  it ;  for  it  answers  no  good  purpose  to  keep  the  smaller  wheels 
in  order,  if  the  greater  one,  which  is  the  support  and  prime  mover  of  the 
whole,  is  neglected." 

Same,  to  Joseph  Jones,  in   Congress,  May  31,  1780.  —  "We  can  no 

longer  drudge  on  in  the  old  way.     .     .     We  are  always  working  up-hill. 

.     I  see  one  head  gradually  changing  into  thirteen.     I  see  one  army 

branching  into  thirteen,     .     .     and  I  am  fearful  of  the  consequences." 

Lafayette  wrote,  in  his  "Memoirs," — "The  pecuniary  succors  [ob- 
tained by  him  from  France]  were  placed  at  the  disposal  of  General  Wash- 
ington ;  for  it  was  upon  that  General  that  reposed  the  whole  confidence  of 
the  Government,  and  the  hopes  of  the  French  nation." 

General  Washington,  to  John  Matthews,  in  Congress,  Oct  A,  1780. — 
"  But,  knowing  the  jealousies  which  have  been  entertained  on  this  head 
(Heaven  knows  how  unjustly) ,  and  that  the  political  helm  was  in  another 
direction,  I  forbore  to  express  my  sentiments  for  a  time  ;  but,  at  a  moment 
when  we  are  tottering  on  the  brink  of  a  precipice,  silence  would  have  been 
criminal."  * 

Same,  to  John  Park  Custis,  in  the  House  of  Delegates,  Va.,  Feb.  28, 
1781.  —  "  In  a  word,  .  .  we  have  brought  a  cause,  which  might  have 
been  happily  terminated  years  ago  by  the  adoption  of  proper  measures, 
to  the  very  verge  of  ruin." 

Same,  to  Colonel  A.  Hamilton,  in  Congress,  March  31,  1783.  —  "I 
rejoice  most  exceedingly  that  there  is  an  end  of  our  warfare,  and  that  such 
a  field  is  opening  to  our  view  as  will  —  with  wisdom  to  cultivate  it  — 
make  us  a  great,  a  respectable,  and  a  happy  people;  but  it  must  be 
improved  by  other  means  than  State  politics  and  unreasonable  jealousies 
and  prejudices.  .  .  .  My  wish  to  see  the  union  of  these  States  estab- 
lished upon  liberal  and  permanent  principles,  and  inclination  to  contribute 
my  mite  in  pointing  out  the  defects  of  the  present  Constitution  [Confed- 
eration], are  equally  great."  f  .  .  For,  to  the  defects  thereof,  .  .  may 
justly  be  ascribed  the  prolongation  of  the  war,  and  consequently  the 
expenses  occasioned  by  it.  More  than  half  the  perplexities  I  have  experi- 
enced in  the  course  of  my  command,  and  almost  the  whole  of  the  difficul- 
ties and  distress  of  the  army,  have  had  their  origin  here." 

*  Alluding  to  a  very  plain  and  emphatic  letter  he  had  written  to  Congress,  on 
the  20th  of  the  preceding  Aujrust. 

t  Equally  great  as  that  expressed  in  a  letter  he  had  shortly  before  received 
from  Col.  Hamilton,  relating  to  the  same  suhject. 


24  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,  AS  THEIR 

Same,  to  Benjamin  Harrison,  Governor  of  Virginia.  —  "  The  disinclina- 
tion of  the  individual  States  to  yield  competent  powers  to  Congress,  .  .  . 
their  unreasonable  jealousy  of  that  body  and  of  one  another,  and  the  dispo- 
sition, which  seems  to  pervade  each,  of  being  all-wise  and  all-powerful 
within  itself,  will,  if  there  is  not  a  change  in  the  system,  be  our  downfall 
as  a  nation.  This  is  as  clear  to  me  as  A,  B,  C  ;  and  I  think  we  have 
opposed  Great  Britain,  and  have  arrived  at  the  present  state  of  indepen- 
dency, to  very  little  purpose,  if  we  cannot  conquer  our  own  prejudices." 

Same,  to  Hon.  John  Jay,  May  18,  1786.  —  "I  coincide  perfectly  with 
you,  my  clear  sir,  that  there  are  errors  in  our  National  Government  which 
call  for  correction,  loudly,  I  would  add.  '.  .  .  "We  are  certainly  in  a 
delicate  situation.  .  .  .  To  be  plainer,  I  think  there  is  more  wicked- 
ness than  ignorance  mixed  in  our  councils.  Under  this  impression,  I 
scarcely  know  what  opinion  to  entertain  of  a  general  Convention.  .  . 
"Xet,  something  must  be  done,  or  the  fabric  must  fall,  for  it  is  certainly 
tottering. 

"  Ignorance  and  design  are  difficult  to  combat." 

Same,  to  William  Gratson,  in  Congress,  July  26,  1786.  —  "  In  a  word, 
.  .  .  our  character  as  a  nation  is  dwindling ;  and  what  it  must  come  to, 
if  a  change  should  not  soon  take  place,  our  enemies  have  foretold  ;  for,  in 
truth,  we  seem  either  not  capable,  or  not  willing,  to  take  care  of  our- 
selves." 

Same,  to  John  Jay,  Aug.  1, 1786.  —  "  Your  sentiments  —  that  our  affairs 
are  drawing  rapidly  to  a  crisis  —  accord  with  my  own.  What  the  event 
will  be,  is  also  beyond  my  foresight.  We  have  errors  to  correct.  .  .  . 
I  do  not  conceive  we  can  exist  long  as  a  nation,  without  having  lodged 
somewhere  a  power,  which  will  pervade  the  whole  Union  in  as  energetic  a 
manner  as  the  authority  of  the  State  Governments  extends  over  the  sev- 
eral States. 

"To  be  fearful  of  investing  Congress  with  ample  powers  for  national 
purposes,  appears  to  me  the  very  climax  of  popular  absurdity  and  madness. 
.  .  .  .  Requisitions  are  actually  little  better  than  a  jest  and  a  by- 
word throughout  the  land.  If  you  tell  the  Legislatures  [of  the  States] 
they  have  violated  the  treaty  of  peace,  and  invaded  the  prerogatives  of 
the  Confederacy,  they  will  laugh  in  your  face.  What,  then,  is  to  be 
done?" 

Same,  to  Bushrod  Washington,  Nov.  15,  1786  — "Among  the  great 
objects  which  you  took  into  consideration,  at  Richmond,  how  comes  it  to 

giss,  that  you  never  turned  your  eyes  to  the  inefficacy  of  the  Federal 
overnment?*  .  .  .  Every  man,  who  considers  the  present  constitu- 
tion of  it,  and  sees  to  what  it  is  verging,  trembles.  The  fabric,  which  took 
nine  years,  at  the  expense  of  much  blood  and  treasure,  to  rear,  now  totters 
to  the  foundation,  and  without  support,  must  soon  fall." 

In  Mr.  Madison's  introduction  to  his  report  of  the  debates 
in  the  Convention  of  1787,  he  says,  respecting  the  condition 
of  the  country  :  — 

"  Among  the  defects  which  had  been  severely  felt,  was  want  of  an  uni- 
formity in  cases  requiring  it,  —  as  laws  of  naturalization  and  bankruptcy, 
a  coercive  authority  operating  on  individuals,  a  guaranty  of  the  internal 
tranquillity  of  the  States. " 

"As  a  natural  consequence  of  this  distracted  condition  of  the  Union,  the 
Federal  authority  had  ceased  to  be  respected  abroad ;  and  ...  at  home, 
it  had  lost  all  confidence  and  credit,  .   .  .  involving  a  general  decay  of 

confidence  and  credit  between  man  and  man 

Such  were  the  defects,  the  deformities,  the  diseases,  and  the  ominous 
prospects,  for  which  the  Convention  were  to  provide  a  remedy,  and  which 

*  A  reference  to  the  objects  of  that  meeting  at  Richmond,  as  described  by  B. 
Washington,  in  a  letter  to  the  General. 


ANCESTORS  WERE   GUIDED,   IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  15 

ought  never  to  be  overlooked  in  expounding  and  appreciating  the  Con- 
stitutional Charter,  the  remedy  that  was  provided." 

OPENING   OF   THE    CONVENTION. 

Again,  in  the  language  of  Mr.  Madison, — 

"  Governor  Randolph  [of  Virginia],  in  an  address,  May  29th,  at  the 
opening  of  the  main  business  of  the  Convention  [of  which  he  was  a  mem- 
ber], reviewed  the  danger  of  our  situation,  and  appealed  to  the  sense  of 
the  best  friends  of  the  United  States  —  to  the  prospect  of  anarchy,  from 
the  laxity  of  government  everywhere." 

Relative  to  the  above-mentioned  address,  the  late  Chief 
Justice  Yates,  of  New  York,  —  who  was  also  a  member,  and 
kept  a  journal,  —  says,  under  the  same  date,  May  29th  :  — 

"  He  [Gov.  Randolph]  closed  these  remarks  with  a  set  of  Resolutions,  — 
fifteen  in  number,  —  which  he  proposed  to  the  Convention  for  their  adop- 
tion, and  as  leading  principles  whereon  to  form  a  new  Government.  He 
candidly  confessed,  that  they  were  not  intended  for  a  Federal  Government. 
He  meant  a  strong,  consolidated  Union,  in  which  the  idea  of  States  should 
be  nearly  annihilated.  He  then  moved,  that  they  should  be  taken  up  in 
Committee  of  the  whole  House." 

Judge  Yates  says,  further,  that  — 

"  Mr.  Charles  Pincknev  [a  member  from  South  Carolina]  then  added, 
that  he  had  reduced  his  ideas  of  a  new  Government  to  a  system,  which  he 
read  ;  and  confessed  that  it  was  grounded  on  the  same  principle  as  that  of 
the  above  Resolutions."  * 

In  Convention,  May  30th. — The  following  Resolutions  were  taken 
under  consideration  :  — 

"  That  a  union  of  the  States  merely  federal  will  not  accomplish  the  ob- 
jects proposed  by  the  Articles  of  Confederation,  namely,  common  defence, 
security  of  liberty,  and  general  welfare. 

"  That  a  National  Government  ought  to  be  established,  consisting  of  a 
supreme  Legislative,  Executive,  and  Judiciary." 

It  seems  proper  to  pause  here,  and  to  inquire  whether  there 
is  found  in  the  preceding  pages  enough  to  convey  some  just 
idea  of  the  apparent  want  of  aptitude  and  consistency  in  the 
administration  of  civil  affairs,  and  of  the  consequent  declen- 
sion of  those  affairs  till  they  were  reduced  to  the  very  verge 
of  hopeless  degradation  and  anarchy. 

An  attempt  will  now  be  made,  through  an  abridgment  of 
Mr.  Madison's  Report  of  the  Debates,  to  show  by  what  agen- 
cies and  influences  those  affairs  were  quickly  extricated  from 
their  extreme  complications,  and  raised  to  an  unprecedented 
condition  of  order,  harmony,  and  prosperity  throughout  the 
land. 

BEGINNING   OF   THE   DEBATES. 

The  Resolution  concerning  the  rights  of  suffrage  in  the 
National  Legislature,  being  taken  up, — 

"  Mr.  Madison  [from  Virginia]  observed  that,  ...  as  the  acts  of  the 
General  Government  would  take  effect  without  an  intervention  of  the  State 

*  See  expressions  of  General  Washiugton,  in  his  letter  to  Mr.  Jay,  Aug.  1,  1783, 
p.  14. 


16  FACTS   TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

Legislatures,  .  .  .  there  was  the  same  reason  for  different  numbers  of  Rep- 
resentatives from  different  States,  as  from  counties  of  different  extents 
within  particular  States." 

May  31rf.  —  The  Resolution,  —  "  That  the  members  of  the  first  branch 
of  the  National  Legislature  ought  to  be  elected  by  the  people  of  the  several 
States,"  —  being  taken  up, — 

"  Mr.  Sherman  [from  Connecticut]  opposed  the  election  by  the  people. 
.  .  .  The  people,  he  said,  immediately,  should  have  as  little  to  do  as 
may  be  about  the  Government.  They  want  information,  and  are  constantly 
liable  to  be  misled." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  [from  Massachusetts].  —  The  evils  we  experience  flow  from 
the  excess  of  democracy.  The  people  do  not  want  virtue,  but  are  the  dupes 
of  pretended  patriots.  ...  He  said  he  was  still  republican ;  but  had 
been  taught  by  experience  the  danger  of  the  levelling  spirit." 

"  Mr.  James  Wilson  [from  Pennsylvania]  contended  strenuously  for  draw- 
ing the  most  numerous  branch  immediately  from  the  people.  .  .  On  ex- 
amination, it  would  be  found  that  the  opposition  of  States  to  Federal 
measures  had  proceeded  much  more  from  the  officers  of  t^ie  States  than 
from  the  people  at  large." 

"Mr.  Madison  considered  the  popular  election  of  one  branch  of  the 
National  Legislature  as  essential  to  every  plan  of  free  government." 

The  clause  of  the  Resolution,  "  authorizing  an  exertion  of 
the  force  of  the  whole  against  a  delinquent  State,"  coming 
under  consideration,  — 

"  Mr.  Madison.  —  The  use  of  force  against  a  State  would  look  more  like 
a  declaration  of  war,  than  an  infliction  of  punishment,  and  would  probably 
be  considered  by  the  party  attacked  as  a  dissolution  of  all  previous  com- 
pacts by  which  it  might  be  bound.  He  hoped  that  such  a  system  would  be 
framed  as  might  render  this  resource  unnecessary." 

June  (St  h.  —  "Mr.  George  Reed  [from  Delaware]. — Too  much  attach- 
ment is  betrayed  to  the  State  Governments.  .  .  If  we  do  not  establish 
a  good  Government,  on  new  principles,  we  must  either  go  to  ruin,  or  have 
the  work  to  do  over  again.  The  people  at  large  are  wrongly  suspected  of 
being  averse  to  a  General  Government.  The  aversion  lies  among  inter- 
ested men  who  possess  their  confidence." 

June  8th.  —  "  Mr.  Charles  Pincknev  moved,  that  the  National  Legisla- 
ture should  have  authority  to  negative  all  laws  which  they  should  judge  to 
be  improper.  He  urged  that  such  a  universality  of  the  power  was  indispen- 
sably necessary  to  render  it  effectual ;  .  .  .  that,  if  the  States  were  left  to 
act  of  themselves  in  any  case,  it  would  be  impossible  to  defend  the  Na- 
tional prerogatives,  however  extensive  they  might  be,  on  paper." 

"  Mr  Madison  seconded  the  motion.  Experience  had  evinced  a  constant 
tendency  in  the  States  to  encroach  on  the  Federal  authority ;  to  violate 
national  treaties  ;  to  infringe  the  rights  and  interests  of  each  other.  .  .  . 
A  negative  was  the  mildest  expedient  that  could  be  devised  for  preventing 
these  mischiefs.  The  existence  of  such  a  check  would  prevent  attempts  to 
commit  them.  Should  no  such  precaution  be  engrafted,  the  only  remedy 
would  be  an  appeal  to  coercion.  Was  such  a  remedy  eligible?  .... 
Any  government  for  the  United  States ,  formed  on  the  supposed  practicability 
of  using  force  against  the  unconstitutional  proceedings  of  the  States,  would 
prove  as  visionary  and  fallacious  as  the  government  of   Congress.      The 

negative  would  render  the  use  of  force  unnecessary 

In  a  word,  .  .  this  prerogative  of  the  General  Government  is  the  great 
pervading  principle  that  must  control  the  centrifugal  tendency  of  the 
States  ;  which,  without  it,  will  continually  fly  out  of  their  proper  orbits, 
and  destroy  the  order  and  harmony  of  the  political  system." 

"Mr.  Wilson.  —  A  discretion  must  be  left  on  one  side  or  the  other. 
Will  it  not  be  most  safely  lodged  on  the  side  of  the  National  Government? 


ANCESTORS   WERE  GUIDED,' IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  17 

Among  the  first  sentiments  expressed  in  the  first  Congress,  one  was,  — 
that  Virginia  is  no  more,  that  Massachusetts  is  no  more,  that  Pennsyl- 
vania is  no  more,  etc.  ;  we  are  now  one  Nation  of  brethren :  we  must 
bury  all  local  interests  and  distinctions.  This  language  continued  for 
some  time.  .  .  .  No  sooner  were  the  State  Governments  formed,  than 
their  jealousy  and  ambition  began  to  display  themselves.  Each  endeavored 
to  cut  a  slice  from  the  common  loaf ;  .  .  till,  at  length,  the  Confederation 
became  frittered  down  to  the  impotent  condition  in  which  it  now  stands. 
.  .  .  To  correct  its  vices  is  the  business  of  this  Convention.  .  .  . 
What  danger  is  there,  that  the  whole  will  unnecessarily  sacrifice  a  part  ? 
But,  reverse  the  case,  and  leave  the  whole  at  the  mercy  of  each  part,  and 
will  not  the  general  interest  be  continually  sacrificed  to  local  interests?  " 
"  Mr.  Joux  Dickinson  [from  Delaware].  —  We  must  take  our  choice  of 
two  things.  We  must  either  subject  the  States  to  the  danger  of  being 
injured  by  the  power  of  the  National  Government,  or  the  latter  to  the  dan- 
ger of  being  injured  by  that  of  the  States.  He  thought  the  danger  greater 
from  the  States." 

June  9th.  —  "  Mr.  Brearly  [of  New  Jersey].  —  He  was  sorry,  he  said,  that 
any  question  on  this  point  [the  rule  of  suffrage]  was  brought  into  view. 
It  had  been  much  agitated  in  Congress  at  the  time  of  forming  the  Confed- 
eration, and  was  then  rightly  settled,  by  allowing  each  sovereign  State  an 
equal  vote.  Otherwise,  the  smaller  States  must  have  been  destroyed, 
instead  of  being  saved.  .  .  <  .  He  had  come  to  the  Convention  with  a 
view  of  being  as  useful  as  he  could,  in  giving  energy  and  stability  to  the 
Federal  Government.  When  the  proposition  for  destroying  the  equality 
of  votes  came  forward,  he  was  astonished,  he  was  alarmed.  Is  it  fair, 
then,  it  will  be  asked,  that  Georgia  should  have  an  equal  vote  with  Vir- 
ginia ?  He  would  not  say  it  was.  What  remedy,  then?  One  only ;  that 
a  map  of  the  United  States  be  spread  out,  that  all  the  existing  boundaries 
be  erased,  and  that  a  new  partition  of  the  whole  be  made  into  thirteen 
equal  parts." 

' '  Mr.  Patterson  [of  New  Jersey]  considered  the  proposition  for  a  pro- 
portional representation  as  striking  at  the  existence  of  the  lesser  States. 
.  .  .  We  have  no  power  to  go  beyond  the  Federal  scheme  ;  and  if  we 
had,  the  people  are  not  ripe  for  any  other.  We  must  follow  the  people ; 
the  people  will  not  follow  us.  The  proposition  could  not  be  maintained. 
.  .  .  If  we  are  to  be  considered  as  a  Nation,  all  State  distinctions  must 
be  abolished.  The  whole  must  be  thrown  into  hotchpotch,  and  when  an 
equal  division  is  made,  then  there  may  be  fairly  an  equality  of  represen- 
tation  New  Jersey  will 

never  confederate  on  the  plan  before  the  Committee ;  she  would  be  swal- 
lowed up.  He  would  rather  submit  to  a  monarch,  to  a  despot,  than  to 
such  a  fate.  He  would  not  only  oppose  the  plan  here,  but,  on  his  return 
home,  do  everything  in  his  power  to  defeat  it  there." 

"Mr.  Wilson.  —  As  all  authority  was  derived  from  the  people,  equal 
numbers  of  people  ought  to  have  an  equal  number  of  representatives ;  and 
different  numbers  of  people,  different  numbers  of  representatives.  This 
principle  had  been  improperly  violated  in  the  Confederation,  owing  to  the 
urgent  circumstances  of  the  time.  .  .  .  Representatives  of  different 
districts  ought  clearly  to  hold  the  same  proportion  to  each  other,  as  their 
respective  constituents  hold  to  each  other.  ...  A  new  partition  of 
the  States  is  desirable,  but  evidently  and  totally  impracticable." 

"  Mr.  Williamson  [of  North  Carolina]  illustrated  the  case  by  a  compari- 
son of  the  different  States  to  counties  of  different  sizes  within  the  same 
State." 

June  lllh.  —  "Mr.  Randolph. — The  National  authority  needs  every 
support  we  can  give  it.  .  .  .  The  Executive  and  Judiciary  of  the 
States,  .  .  unless  they  be  brought  under  some  tie  to  the  National  system,  will 
always  lean  too  much  to  the  State  systems,  whenever  a  contest  arises 
between  the  two." 


18 

June  12th.  —  "Mr.  Madison.  —  No  member  of  the  Convention  could 
say  what  the  opinions  of  his  constituents  were  at  this  time.  .  .  .  We 
ought  to  consider  what  was  right  and  necessary  in  itself  for  the  attain- 
ment of  a  proper  government.  A  plan  adjusted  to  this  idea  will  com- 
mend itself." 

Iii  another  speech,  on  the  same  day,  Mr.  Madison  said  :  — 

"  What  we  wished  was,  to  give  to  the  Government  that  stability  which 
was  everywhere  called  for.  .  .  He  conceived  it  to  be  of  great  impor- 
tance that  a  stable  and  firm  government,  organized  in  the  republican  form, 
should  be  held  out  to  the  people.  If  this  be  not  done,  .  .  it  is  much  to 
be  feared,  the  time  is  not  distant,  when,  in  universal  disgust,  they  Avill 
renounce  the  blessing  which  they  have  purchased  at  so  dear  a  rate,  and 
be  ready  for  any  change  that  may  be  proposed  to  them." 

June  13th.  —  The  Resolutions  proposed  by  Governor  Ran- 
dolph, having  been  taken  up  and  acted  on,  the  Committee 
rose,  and  Mr.  Gorham  made  a  Report,  consisting  of  nineteen 
Resolutions  ;  the  first  of  which  was  the  following :  — 

11  Resolved,  That  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  Committee,  that  a  National 
Government  ought  to  be  established,  consisting  of  a  Supreme  Legislative, 
Executive,  and  Judiciary." 

They  had  accomplished  so  much  in  about  two  weeks,  and 
were  thus  encouraged  to  anticipate  a  speedy,  successful 
result  of  their  efforts,  in  accordance  with  this  Resolution. 

The  consideration  of  the  Report  was  postponed  till  the 
next  day,  "  to  give  opportunity  for  other  plans  to  be  proposed." 

June  15lh.  — "  Mr.  Patterson  laid  before  the  Convention  the  plan  [only 
another  edition  of  the  Confederation,  a  little  enlarged,]  which,  he  said, 
several  of  the  Deputations  wished  to  be  substituted  in  place  of  that  pro- 
posed by  Mr.  Randolph." 

The  introduction  of  this  plan  changed  the  aspect  of  affairs 
essentially ;  but  it  was  agreed  to  refer  it,  together  with  the 
plan  of  Mr.  Randolph,  to  a  Committee  of  the  Whole. 

June  \§th. —  "In  Committee  of  the  Whole,  on  the  Resolu- 
tions proposed  by  Mr.  Patterson  and  Mr.  Randolph,  — 

"  Mr.  Lansing  [from  New  York]  called  for  the  reading  of  the  first  Reso- 
lution of  each  plan,  which  he  considered  as  involving  principles  directly 
in  contrast.  That  of  Mr.  Patterson,  says  he,  sustains  the  sovereignty  of 
the  respective  States  ;  that  of  Mr.  Randolph  destroys  it  .  .  The  plan 
of  Mr.  Randolph,  in  short,  absorbs  all  power,  except  what  may  be  exer- 
cised in  the  little  local  matters  of  the  States,  which  are  not  objects  worthy 
of  the  supreme  cognizance.  He  grounds  his  preference  of  Mr.  Patterson's 
plan  chiefly  on  two  objections  to  that  of  Mr.  Randolph,  —  first,  want  of 
power  in  the  Convention  to  discuss  and  propose  it ;  secondly,  the  improba- 
bility of  its  being  adopted." 

"  Mr.  Patterson  said,  as  he  had  on  a  former  occasion  given  his  senti- 
ments on  the  plan  proposed  by  Mr.  Randolph,  he  would  now  give  his  rea- 
sons in  favor  of  that  proposed  by  himself.  He  preferred  it,  because  it 
accorded,  —  first,  with  the  powers  of  the  Convention  ;  secondly,  with  the 
sentiments  of  the  people.  .  .  I  Came  here,  not  to  speak  my  own  senti- 
ments, but  the  sentiments  of  those  who  sent  me.  Our  object  is  not  such  a 
Government  as  may  be  best  in  itself,  but  such  a  Government  as  our  con- 
stituents have  authorized  us  to  prepare,  and  as  they  will  approve.     .     .     . 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  19 

If  the  sovereignty  of  the  States  is  to  be  maintained,  the  representatives 
must  be  drawn  immediately  from  the  States,  not  from  the  people  ;  and  we 
have  no  power  to  vary  the  idea  of  equal  sovereignty.  The  only  expedient 
that  will  cure  the  difficulty  is  that  of  throwing  the  States  into  hotchpotch." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  entered  into  a  contrast  of  the  principal  points  of  the 

two  plans With  regard  to  the  power  of  the 

Convention,  he  conceived  himself  authorized  to  conclude  nothing,  but  to 
be  at  liberty  to  propose  anything.  .  .  With  regard  to  the  sentinlents  of  the 
people,  he  conceived  it  difficult  to  know  precisely  what  they  are.  .  He 
could  not  persuade  himself  that  the  State  Governments  and  sovereignties 
were  so  much  the  idols  of  the  people,  nor  a  National  Government  so  obnox- 
ious to  them,  as  some  supposed.  Where  do  the  people  look,  at  present,  for 
relief  from  the  evils  of  which  they  complain?  Is  it  from  an  internal 
reform  in  their  Governments?  No,  sir.  It  is  from  the  National  councils 
that  relief  is  expected.  For  these  reasons,  he  did  not  fear  that  the  people 
would  not  follow  us  into  a  National  Government ;  and  it  will  be  a  further 
recommendation  of  Mr.  Randolph's  plan,  that  it  is  to  be  submitted  to 
them,  and  not  to  the  Legislatures,  for  ratification." 

"  Ms.  0.  Pincknev.  —  He  thought  the  Convention  authorized  to  go  any 
length,  in  recommending,  which  they  found  necessary  to  remedy  the  evils 
which  produced  this  Convention." 

"  Mr.  Randolph  was  not  scrupulous  on  the  point  of  power.  When  the 
salvation  of  the  Republic  was  at  stake,  it  would  be  treason  to  our  trust, 
not  to  propose  what  we  found  necessary.  .  .  .  The  true  question  is, 
whether  we  shall  adhere  to  the  Federal  plan,  or  introduce  the  National 
plan.  Toe  insufficiency  of  the  former  has  been  fully  displayed  by  the 
trial  already  made.  There  are  but  two  modes  by  which  the  end  of  a  Gen- 
eral Government  can  be  attained :  the  first,  by  coercion,  as  proposed  by 
Mr.  Patterson's  plan  ;  the  second,  by  real  legislation,  as  proposed  by  the 
other  plan.  Coercion,  he  pronounced  to  be  impracticable,  expensive,  cruet  to 
individuals.     .     .     .     We  must  resort,  therefore,  to  a  national  legislation 

over  individuals ;  for  which  Congress  are  unfit They  are  a 

mere  diplomatic  body,  and  are  always   obsequious  to  the  views  of  the 
States,  who  are  always  encroaching  on  the  authority  of  the  United  States. 
A  provision  for  harmony  among  the  States  —  as  in  trade,  naturalization, 
etc. ;  for  crushing  rebellion,  whenever  it  may  rear  its  crest ;  and  for  cer- 
tain other  general  benefits —  must  be  made.       ...... 

A  National  Government  alone,  properly  constituted,  will  answer  the  pur- 
pose ;  and  he  begged  it  to  be  considered,  that  the  present  is  the  last 
moment  for  establishing  one.  After  this  select  experiment,  the  people 
will  yield  to  despair." 

June  \%ih.  — "  Colonel  Hamilton  [from  New  York].  — He  had  been  hith- 
erto silent  on  the  business  before  the  Convention,  partly  from  respect  to 
others  whose  superior  abilities,  age,  and  experience,  rendered  him  unwil- 
ling to  bring  forward  ideas  dissimilar  to  theirs,  and  partly  from  his 
delicate  situation  with  respect  to  his  own  State,  to  whose  sentiments,  as 
expressed  by  his  colleagues  [Mr.  Yates  and  Mr.  Lansing],  he  could  by  no 
means  accede.  .  The  crisis,  however,  which  now  marked  our  affairs, 
was  too  serious  to  permit  any  scruples  whatever  to  prevail  over  the  duty 
impjsed  on  every  man  to  contribute  his  efforts  for  the  public  safety  and 
happiness.  As  to  the  powers  of  the  Convention,  he  thought  the  doubts 
started  on  that  subject  had  arisen  from  distinctions  and  reasonings  too 
subtle.  ...  He  agreed  with  the  honorable  gentleman  from  Virginia, 
Mr.  Randolph,  that  we  owed  it  to  our  country,  to  do  in  this  emergency, 
whatever  we  should  deem  essential  to  its  happiness.  To  rely  on  and  pro- 
pose any  plan  not  adequate  to  its  exigencies,  merely  because  it  was  not 
clearly  within  our  powers,  would  be  to  sacrifice  the  means  to  the  end 

.  .  .  .  The  great  question  is,  what  provision  shall  we  make  for  the 
happiness  of  our  country?  .  .  .  The  great  and  essential  principles 
necessary  for  the  support  of  government  are,  —  first,  an  active  and  con- 


20  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,    AS  THEIR 

Btant  interest  in  supporting  it.  This  principle  does  not  exist  in  the  Slates 
in  favor  of  the  Federal  Government.  They  have  evidently  in  a  high 
degree,  the  esprit  de  corps.  They  constantly  pursue  internal  interests 
adverse  to  those  of  the  whole.  They  have  their  particular  debts,  their 
particular  plans  of  finance,  etc.  All  these,  when  opposed  to,  invariably 
prevail  over,  .  .  .  the  plans  of  Congress.  .  .  The  ambition  of  their 
demagogues  is  known  to  hate  the  control  of  the  General  Government. 

An  habitual  attachment  of  the  people.     The  whole  force  of  this  tie  is  on 

the  side  of  the  State  Government All  the  passions  .  .  of 

avarice,  ambition,  interest,  which  govern  most  individuals,  and  all  public 
bodies,  fall  into  the  current  of  the  States,  and  do  not  flow  into  the  stream 
of  the  General  Government.  The  former,  therefore,  will  generally  be  an 
overmatch  for  the  General  Government ;  and  render  any  Confederacy  in  its 
very  nature  precarious.  Theory  is,  in  this  case,  fully  confirmed  by  experi- 
ence [as  in  the  Amphictyonic  Council,  the  German  Confederacy,  the  Swiss 
Cantons,  etc.].  How,  then,  are  all  these  evils  to  be  avoided?  Only  by  such 
a  complete  sovereignty  in  the  General  Government  as  will  turn  all  the 
strong  principles  and  passions  above  mentioned  on  its  side.  .  .  If  States 
are  to  deliberate  on  the  mode,  they  will  deliberate  on  the  object,  of  the 
supplies  ;  and  will  grant  or  not  grant,  as  they  approve  or  disapprove  of  it. 
.  .  .  Bad  principles  in  a  government,  though  slow,  are  sure  in  their 
operation,  and  will  gradually  destroy  it.  .  .  Two  sovereignties  cannot 
coexist  within  the  same  limits.  It  was  once  thought  that  the  power  of 
Congress  was  amply  sufficient  to  secure  the  end  of  their  institution.  The 
error  is  now  seen  by  every  one.  .  .  .  One  of  the  weak  sides  of  repub- 
lics was  their  being  liable  to  foreign  influence  and  corruption.  Men  of 
little  character,  acquiring  great  power,  become  easily  the  tools  of  inter- 
meddling neighbors.  .  .  .  What  is  the  inference  from  all  these  obser- 
vations ?  That  we  ought  to  go  as  far,  in  order  to  attain  stability  and  per- 
manency, as  republican  principles  will  admit." 

June  19th,  —  "  Mr.  Madison  .  .  observed  that  violations  of  the  Federal 
Articles  had  been  numerous  and  notorious.  .  .  .  He  stated  the  object 
of  a  proper  plan  to  be  two-fold,  —  first,  to  preserve  the  Union  ;  secondly, 
to  provide  a  Government  that  will  remedy  the  evils  felt  by  the  States,  both. 
in  their  united  and  individual  capacities.  Examine  Mr.  Patterson's  plan. 
.  .  .  Will  it  prevent  the  violations  of  the  law  of  nations,  and  of  treaties 
which,  if  not  prevented,  must  involve  us  in  foreign  wars  ?  The  tendency 
of  the  States  to  these  violations  has  been  manifested  in  sundry  instances. 
.  .  .  Will  it  prevent  encroachments  on  the  Federal  authority?  A 
tendency  to  such  encroachments  has  been  sufficiently  exemplified  among 
ourselves,  as  well  as  in  every  other  confederated  republic,  ancient  or  mod- 
ern. .  .  .  If  we  recur  to  the  examples  of  other  confederacies,  we  shall 
find  in  all  of  them,  the  same  tendency  of  the  parts  to  encroach  on  the 
authority  of  the  whole.  ...  In  developing  the  evils  which  vitiate 
the  political  system  of  the  United  States,  it  is  proper  to  take  into  view 
those  which  prevail  within  the  States  individually,  as  well  as  those  which 
affect  them  collectively  ;  since  the  former  indirectly  affect  the  whole,  and 
there  is  great  reason  to  believe  that  the  pressure  of  them  had  a  full  share  in 
the  motives  which  produced  the  present  Convention.  .  .  .  The  great 
difficulty  lies  in  the  affair  of  representation.  .  .  .  Their  language  was, 
that  it  would  not  be  safe  for  Delaware  to  allow  Virginia  sixteen  times  as 
many  votes  [as  Delaware].  The  expedient  proposed  by  them  was,  that 
all  the  States  should  be  thrown  into  one  mass,  and  a  new  partition  be 
made  into  thirteen  equal  parts.  .  .  The  dissimilarities  .  .  amounted 
to  a  prohibition  of  the  attempt." 

On  the  question,  whether  the  Committee  should  rise,  and 
Mr.  Randolph's  propositions  be  reported  without  alteration, 
...  as  preferable  to  those  of  Mr.  Patterson,  —  seven  States 
in  the  affirmative,  three  in  the  negative,  one  divided. 


ANCESTORS   WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  *88,  '89.  21 

Mr.  Randolph's  plan,  as  reported  by  the  Committee,  June 
13^,  being  then  before  the  House,  and  the  first  Resolution, 
—  "That  a  National  Government  ought  to  be  established," 
etc.,*  —  being  taken  up, — 

"Mr.  Wilson  observed  that,  by  a  National  Government,  he  did  not 
mean  one  that  would  swallow  up  the  State  Governments.  .  .  .  They 
were  absolutely  necessary  for  certain  purposes  which  the  former  could  not 
reach.  All  large  Governments  must  bo  subdivided  into  lesser  jurisdic- 
tions." 

'*■  Colonel  Hamilton  coincided  with  the  proposition  as  it  stood  in  the 
Report.  ...  No  boundary  could  be  drawn  between  the  National  and 
State  Legislatures  ;  the  former  must  therefore  have  indefinite  authority. 
If  it  were  limited  at  all,  the  rivalship  of  the  States  would  gradually  sub- 
vert it.  Even,  as  corporations,  the  extent  of  some  of  them,  as  Virginia, 
Massachusetts,  etc.,  would  be  formidable.  As  States,  he  thought  they 
ought  to  be  abolished  ;  but  he  admitted  the  necessity  of  leaving  in  them 
subordinate  jurisdictions." 

"  Mr.  King.  — The  States  were  not  sovereigns,  in  the  sense  contended 
for  by  some.  They  did  not  possess  the  peculiar  features  of  sovereignty. 
.  "  .  Considering  them  as  political  beings,  they  were  dumb  ;  for  they 
could  not  speak  to  any  foreign  sovereign  whatever.  They  were  deaf;  for 
they  could  not  hear  any  proposition  from  such  sovereign.  .  .  Congress 
can  act  alone,  without  the  States.  .  .  No  act  of  the  States  can  vary  the 
situation,  or  prevent  the  judicial  consequences.  If  the  States,  therefore, 
retained  some  portion  of  their  sovereignty,  they  had  certainly  divested 
themselves  of  essential  portions  of  it.  If  they  formed  a  Confederacy  in 
some  respects,  they  formed  a  Nation  in  others.  He  doubted  much  the 
practicability  of  annihilating  the  States  ;  but  thought  much  of  their  power 
ought  to  be  taken  from  them." 

"Mr.  Luther  Martin  saidf  he  considered  that  the  separation  from 
Great  Britain  placed  the  thirteen  States  in  a  state  of  nature  towards  each 
other  ;  .  .  .  that  he  could  never  accede  to  a  plan  that  would  introduce 
an  inequality,  and  lay  ten  States  at  the  mercy  of  Virginia,  Massachusetts, 
and  Pennsylvania." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  could  not  admit  the  doctrine.  .  .  He  read  the  Decla- 
ration of  Independence,  .  .  .  inferring  that  they  were  independent,  not 
individually,  but  unitedly." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton  assented  to  the  doctrine  of  Mr.  Wilson.  He  denied 
the  doctrine,  that  the  States  were  thrown  into  a  state  of  nature.  .  .  . 
The  more  close  the  union  of  the  States,  and  the  more  complete  the  author- 
ity of  the  whole,  the  less  opportunity  will  be  allowed  to  the  stronger 
States  to  oppress  the  weaker." 

June  20th.  —  The  second  Resolution,  —  "  That  the  National 
Legislature  ought  to  consist  of  two  branches,"  — being  taken 
up,— 

"  Mr.  Lansing  moved,  instead  of  the  second  Resolution,  that  the  powers 
of  Legislation  be  vested  in  Congress.  He  observed  that  the  true  question 
was,  whether  the  Convention  would  adhere  to,  or  depart  from,  the  founda- 
tion of  the  present  Confederacy.  ...  It  could  not  be  expected  that 
those  possessing  sovereignty  would  ever  voluntarily  part  with  it.  It  was 
not  to  be  expected  from  any  one  State,  much  less  from  thirteen.  .  .  . 
He  doubted  whether  any  General  Government,  equally  beneficial  to  all, 

*  See  that  Resolution,  p.  18. 

t  Mr.  Martin  was  from  Maryland.  He  took  his  seat  in  the  Convention.  June 
Wi. 


22  FACTS   TO    GUIDE   AMERICANS,    AS   THEIR 

can  be  attained.  That  now  under  consideration,  he  is  sure,  must  be  utterly 
unattainable.  .  .  .  The  system  was  too  novel  and  complex.  No  man 
could  foresee  what  its  operation  will  be,  either  with  respect  to  the  General 
Government,  or  the  State  Governments.  One  or  the  other,  it  has  been 
surmised,  must  absorb  the  whole." 

"  Colonel  Mason  [from  Virginia]  did  not  expect  this  point  would  have 
been  reagitated.  The  essential  differences  between  the  two  plans  had  been 
clearly  stated.  The  principal  objections  against  that  of  Mr.  Randolph 
were  the  want  of  power  and  the  want  of  practicability.  There  can  be  no 
weight  in  the  first,  as  the  fiat  is  not  to  be  here,  but  in  the  people.  .  .  . 
The  impracticability  of  gaining  the  public  concurrence,  he  thought,  was 
etill  more  groundless.  .  .  .  He  meant  not  to  throw  any  reflections  on 
Congress,  as  a  body,  much  less  on  any  particular  members  of  it.  He 
meant,  however,  to  speak  his  sentiments,  without  reserve,  on  this  subject. 
.  .  .  Is  it  to  be  thought  that  the  people  of  America  .  .  .  will  surren- 
der both  the  sword  and  the  purse  to  the  same  body,  —  and  that,  too,  not 
chosen  by  themselves?  .  .  .  Will  they  give  unbounded  confidence  to 
a  secret  journal,  —  to  the  intrigues,  to  the  factions,  which,  in  the  nature 
of  things,  appertain  to  such  an  assembly?  If  any  man  doubts  the  exist- 
ence of  these  characters  of  Congress,  let  him  consult  their  journals  for  the 
yeai-3  78,  '79,  and  '80.  ...  It  was  acknowledged  by  Mr.  Patterson 
that  his  plan  could  not  be  enforced  without  military  coercion.  Does  he 
consider  the  force  of  this  concession  ?  .  .  .  Rebellion  is  the  only  case 
in  which  the  military  force  of  the  State  can  be  properly  exerted  against  its 
citizens.  In  one  point  of  view,  he  was  struck  with  horror  at  the  prospect 
of  recurring  to  this  expedient.  .  .  .  He  took  this  occasion  to  repeat, 
that,  notwithstanding  his  solicitude  to  establish  a  National  Government, 
he  never  would  agree  to  abolish  the  State  Governments,  or  render  them 
absolutely  insignificant.  .  .  The  Convention  .  .  could  not  be  expected 
to  make  a  faultless  Government.  And  he  should  prefer  trusting  to  pos- 
terity the  amendment  of  its  defects,  rather  than  to  push  the  experiment 
too  far." 

"  Mr.  Luther  Martin  agreed  with  Colonel  Mason,  as  to  the  importance 
of  the  State  Governments.  He  would  support  them,  at  the  expense  of  the 
General  Government,  which  was  instituted  for  the  purpose  of  that  sup- 
port. He  saw  no  necessity  for  two  branches ;  and,  if  it  existed,  Congress 
might  be   organized   into   two 


He  thought  .  .  that  a  National  Judiciary,  extended  into  the  States,  would 
be  ineffectual,  and  would  be  viewed  with  a  jealousy  inconsistent  with  its 
usefulness." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  [from  Connecticut]  seconded  and  supported  Mr.  Lan- 
sing's motion.  .  .  Congress  carried  us  through  the  war  ;  and,  perhaps, 
as  well  as  any  government  would  have  done.  .  .  .  x\ll  the  States  were 
sensible  of  the  defect  of  power  in  Congress.  He  thought  much  might  be 
said  in  apology  for  the  failure  of  the  State  Legislatures  to  comply  with  the 
Confederation.  .  .  ■  Congress,  indeed,  by  the  Confederation,  have,  in 
fact,  the  right  of  saying  how  much  the  people  shall  pay,  and  to  what  pur- 
pose it  shall  be  applied  :  and  this  right  was  granted  to  them  in  the  expec- 
tation that  it  would  in  all  cases  have  its  effect." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  urged  the  necessity  of  two  branches.  .  .  [After  notic- 
ing the  defects  of  other  Confederacies],  he  appealed  to  our  own  experience 
of  the  defects  of  our  own  Confederacy.  He  had  been,  six  years  of  the 
twelve  since  the  commencement  of  the  Revolution,  a  member  of  Congress, 
and  had  felt  all  its  weaknesses.  .  .  The  success  of  the  Revolution  was 
owing  to  other  causes  than  the  constitution  of  Congress.  In  many  in- 
stances, it  went  even  against  the  difficulties  arising  from  Congress  them- 
selves. He  insisted  that  a  jealousy  would  exist  between  the  State  Legisla- 
tures and  the  General  Legislature ;  observing  that  the  members  of  the 
former  would  have  views  and  feelings  very  distinct,  in  this  respect,  from 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN    1787,  '88,  '89.  23 

their  constituents.  ...  He  observed  that  the  addresses  of  Congress  to 
the  people  at  large  had  always  been  better  received,  and  produced  greater 
effect,  than  those  raade  to  the  Legislatures." 

The  question  was  then  taken ;  and  Mr.  Lansing's  motion, 
seconded  by  Mr.  Sherman,  was  lost,  —  Jye,  four;  No,  six. 

June  2lst.  —  The  second  Resolution  in  the  Report  of  the 
Committee  of  the  Whole,  —  "  That  the  National  Legislature 
ought  to  consist  of  two  branches,"  —  being  again  under  con- 
sideration, — 

"Mr.  Wilson.  —  It  was  asked,  how  the  General  Government  and  indi- 
viduality of  the  particular  States  could  be  reconciled  to  each  other,  and 
how  the  latter  could  be  secured  against  the  former  ?  Might  it  not,  on  the 
other  side,  be  asked,  how  the  former  was  to  be  secured  against  the  latter? 
.  .  .  The  General  Government  will  be  as  ready  to  preserve  the  rights 
of  the  States  as  the  latter  are  to  preserve  the  rights  of  individuals,  all  the 
members  of  the  former  having  a  common  interest,  as  representatives  of  all 
the  people  of  the  latter,  to  leave  the  State  Governments  in  possession  of 
what  the  people  wish  them  to  retain.  He  could  not  discover,  therefore, 
any  danger  whatever  on  the  side  from  which  it  was  apprehended.  On  the 
contrary,  he  conceived  that,  in  spite  of  every  precaution,  the  General 
Government  would  be  in  perpetual  danger  of  encroachments  from  the 
State  Governments." 

**  Mr.  Madison  was  of  opinion,  in  the  first  place,  that  there  was  less 
danger  of  encroachment  from  the  General  Government  than  from  the  State 
Governments  ;  and,  in  the  second  place,  that  the  mischiefs  from  encroach- 
ments would  be  less  fatal,  if  made  by  the  former  than  if  made  by  the 
latter. 

"All  the  examples  of  other  confederacies  prove  the  greater  tendency,  in 
euch  systems,  to  anarchy  than  to  tyranny ;  to  disobedience  of  the  members 
than  to  usurpations  of  the  federal  head.  Our  own  experience  had  fully 
illustrated  this  tendency.  ...  In  some  of  the  States,  particularly  in 
Connecticut,  all  the  townships  are  incorporated,  and  have  certain  limited 
jurisdictions.  Have  the  representatives  of  the  people  of  the  townships,  in 
the  Legislature  of  the  State,  ever  endeavored  to  despoil  the  townships  of 
any  part  of  their  local  authority  ?  .  .  .  .  The  relation  of  a  General 
Government  to  State  Governments  is  parallel. 

"  Guards  were  more  necessary  against  the  encroachments  of  the  State 
Governments  on  the  General  Government,  than  of  the  latter  on  the  former. 
.  .  .  .  Were  it  practicable  for  the  General  Government  to  extend  its 
care  to  every  requisite  object,  without  the  cooperation  of  the  State  Gov- 
ernments, the  people  would  not  be  less  free,  as  members  of  one  great 
Republic  than  as  members  of  thirteen  small  ones.  .  .  .  Supposing, 
therefore,  a  tendency  in  the  General  Government  to  absorb  the  State 
Governments,  no  fatal  consequences  could  result.  Taking  the  reverse  as 
the  supposition,  that  a  tendency  should  be  left  in  the  State  Governments 
towards  an  independence  on  the  General  Government,  and  the  gloomy 
consequences  need  not  be  pointed  out.  The  imagination  of  them  must 
have  suggested  to  the  States  the  experiment  we  are  now  making  to 
prevent  the  calamity,  and  must  have  formed  the  chief  motive  with  those 
present  to  undertake  the  arduous  task." 

The  question  being  taken  on  the  Resolution,  —  "  That  the 
Legislature  ought  to  consist  of  two  branches,"  —  the  votes 
were,  Aye,  seven  ;  No,  three.  Maryland  divided,  and  there- 
fore not  counted. 

The  third  Resolution  of  the  Report,  on  the  13th,  —  "That 
the  members  of  the  first  branch  of  the  National  Legislature 


24  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,    AS  THEIR 

ought  to  be  elected  by  the  people  of  the  several  States,"  — 
being  taken  up, — 

"  General  Pinckney  [from  South  Carolina]  moved  that  the  first  branch, 
instead  of  being  elected  by  the  people,  should  be  elected  in  such  manner 
as  the  Legislature  of  each  State  should  direct." 

4'  Mr.  L.  Martin  seconded  the  motion." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton  considered  the  motion  as  intended  manifestly  to 
transfei  the  election  from  the  people  to  the  State  Legislatures,  which  would 
essentially  vitiate  the  plan.  It  would  increase  the  State  influence,  which 
could  not  he  too  watchfully  guarded  against." 

"  Mr.  Sfkrman  would  like  an  election  by  the  Legislatures  best,  but  is 
contend  with  the  plan  as  it  stands." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  considered  the  election  of  the  first  branch  by  the  people 
not  ')ii\j  aF  the  corner-stone,  but  as  the  foundation  of  the  fabric.  .  .  . 
The  Legislatures  are  actuated  not  merely  by  the  sentiment  of  the  people, 
but.  have  a.n  official  sentiment  opposed  to  that  of  the  General  Government, 
and  perhaps  to  that  of  the  people  themselves." 

"  Mr.  King  enlarged  on  the  same  distinction." 

"  On  the  question  for  General  Pinckney's  motion,  Aye, 
four;  No,  six  ;  Maryland,  divided." 

"  On  the  question  for  the  election  of  the  first  branch  by 
the  people,  Aye,  nine  ;  No,  one;  Maryland,  divided.'' 

June  22c?.  —  The  clause  in  the  third  Resolution,  —  "To 
receive  fixed  stipends  .  .  out  of  the  National  Treasury," — « 
being  considered, — 

"Mr.  Ellsworth  [from  Connecticut]  moved  to  substitute  payment  by 
the  States  out  of  their  own  treasuries." 

"  Mr.  Gorham  wished  not  to  refer  the  matter  to  the  State  Legislatures. 
.  .  .  Let  the  National  Legislature  provide  for  their  own  wages,  from 
time  to  time,  as  the  State  Legislatures  do." 

"  Mr.  Randolph.  —  If  the  States  were  to  pay  the  members  of  the 
National  Legislature,  a  dependence  would  be  created  that  would  vitiate 
the  whole  system.  The  whole  nation  has  an  interest  in  the  attendance 
and  services  of  the  members.  The  National  Treasury,  therefore,  is  the 
proper  fund  for  supporting  them." 

"  Mr.  King  urged  the  danger  of  creating  a  dependence  on  the  States, 
by  leaving  to  them  the  payment  of  the  members  of  the  National  Legisla- 
ture." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  contended  for  referring  both  the  quantum  and  the  pay- 
ment of  it  to  the  State  Legislatures." 

"Mr.  Wilson.  —  Rethought  it  of  great  moment,  that  the  members 
of  the  National  Government  should  be  left  as  independent  as  possible  of 
the  State  Governments  in  all  respects." 

"  Mr.  Madison  concurred  in  the  necessity  of  preserving  the  compensa- 
tions for  the  National  Government  independent  of  the  State  Governments." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton.  — He  was  strenuous  against  making  the  National 
Council  dependent  on  the  legislative  rewards  of  the  States.  .  .  .  He 
expatiated  emphatically  on  the  difference  between  the  feelings  and  views 
of  the  people  and  those  of  the  Government  of  the  States,  arising  from  the 
personal  interests  and  official  inducements  which  must  render  the  latter 
unfriendly  to  the  General  Government." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  *89.  25 

On  the  question  for  striking  out  "  National  Treasury,"  as 
moved  by  Mr.  Ellsworth.  — 

"  Colonel  Hamilton  renewed  his  opposition  to  it.  He  pressed  the 
distinction  between  the  State  Governments  and  the  people.  The  former 
would  be  the  rivals  of  the  General  Government.  The  State  Legislatures 
ought  not,  therefore,  to  be  paymasters  of  the  latter." 

On  the  question  for  Mr.  Ellsworth's  motion,  Aye,  four ; 
No,  five. 

June  25th.  —  The  Resolution  in  the  Report,  —  "  That  the 
members  of  the  second  branch  of  the  National  Legislature 
ought  to  be  chosen  by  the  individual  Legislatures,"  — being 
taken  up, — 

"Mr.  Charles  Pinckney.  —  The  efficacy  of  the  system  will  depend  on 
this  Article.  In  order  to  form  a  right  judgment  in  the  case,  it  will  be 
proper  to  examine  the  situation  of  this  country.         ..... 

"  Our  true  situation  appears  to  me  to  be  this,  —  a  new,  extensive  coun- 
try, containing  within  itself  the  materials  for  forming  a  Government 
capable  of  extending  to  its  citizens  all  the  blessings  of  civil  and  religious 
liberty  ;  capable  of  making  them  happy  at  home.  This  is  the  great  end 
of  republican  establishments.  .  .  .  The  people  of  the  United  States 
may  be  divided  into  three  classes,  —  professional  men,  .  .  .  commercial 
men,  .  .  and  the  landed  interest,  the  owners  and  cultivators  of  the  soil. 
.  .  .  .  These  three  classes,  however  distinct  in  their  pursuits,  are 
individually  equal  in  the  political  scale,  and  may  be  easily  proved  to  have 
but  one  interest.  The  dependence  of  each  on  the  other  is  mutual.  The 
merchant  depends  on  the  planter.  Both  must,  in  private  as  well  as  public 
affairs,  be  connected  with  the  professional  men ;  who,  in  their  turn,  must 
in  some  measure  depend  on  them.  Hence  it  is  clear,  .  .  that,  after  all, 
there  is  one,  but  one,  great  and  equal  body  of  citizens  composing  the 
inhabitants  of  this  country.  .  .  For  a  people  thus  circumstanced  are 
we,  then,  to  form  a  Government ;  and  the  question  is,  what  sort  of  Gov- 
ernment is  best  suited  to  them  ?  .  .  "We  must,  as  has  been  observed, 
suit  our  Government  to  the  people  it  is  to  direct.  These  are,  I  believe, 
as  active,  intelligent,  and  as  susceptible  of  good  government  as  any  people 
in  the  world.  The  confusion  which  has  produced  the  present  relaxed  state 
is  not  owing  to  them.  It  is  owing  to  the  weakness  and  defects  of  a  Gov- 
ernment incapable  of  combining  the  various  interests  it  is  intended  to 
unite,  and  destitute  of  energy.  All  that  we  have  to  do,  then,  is  to  distribute 
the  powers  of  government  in  such  a  manner,  and  for  such  limited  periods, 
as,  while  it  gives  a  proper  degree  of  permanency  to  the  magistrate,  will 
reserve  to  the  people  the  right  of  election,  which  they  will  not  or  ought 
not  frequently  to  part  with.  I  am  of  opinion,  that  this  may  easily  be 
done  ;  and  that,  with  some  amendments,  the  propositions  before  the  Com- 
mittee will  fully  answer  this  end." 

"  Mr.  Wilson.  —  .  .  It  was  necessary  to  observe  the  two-fold  relation 
in  which  the  people  will  stand,  first,  as  citizens  of  the  General  Govern- 
ment ;  and,  secondly,  as  citizens  of  their  particular  State.  The  General 
Government  was  meant  for  them,  in  the  first  capacity  ;  the  State  Govern- 
ments, in  the  second.  Both  Governments  were  derived  from  the  people  ; 
both  meant  for  the  people ;  both,  therefore,  ought  to  be  regulated  on  the 
same  principles.  The  same  train  of  ideas  which  belonged  to  the  relation 
of  the  citizens  to  their  State  Governments  were  applicable  to  their  rela- 
tions to  the  General  Government.  And,  in  forming  the  latter,  we  ought 
to  proceed  by  abstracting  as  much  as  possible  from  the  idea  of  the  State 
Governments.  .  .  The  General  Government  is  not  an  Assemblage  of 
States,  but  of  individuals,  for  certain  political  purposes ;  it  is  not  meant 
for  the  States,  but  for  the  individuals  composing  them  ;  the  individuals, 
therefore,  not  the  StateB,  ought  to  be  represented  in  it." 


26  FACTS   TO    GUIDE    AMERICANS,    AS   THEIR 

On  the  question  to  agree  "  That  the  members  of  the  second 
branch  be  chosen  by  the  individual  Legislatures,"  Aye,  nine  ; 
iVb,  two. 

The  clause,  —  "  That  the  second  branch  hold  their  offices 
for  a  term  of  seven  years,"  —  being  considered, — 

"Mr.  Read  proposed  that  they  should  hold  their  offices  during  good 
behavior." 

"  Mr.  Robert  Morris  [from  Pennsylvania]  seconds  him."* 

Jane  26th.  —  The  duration  of  the  second  branch  being 
again  under  consideration,  — 

"  Mr.  Gorham  moved  to  fill  the  blank  with  six  years,  one-third  of  the 
members  to  go  out  every  second  year." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  seconded  the  motion." 

"  General  Pincknev  opposed  six,  in  favor  of  four  years." 

"  Mr.  Read  moved  that  the  term  be  nine  years.  .  .  He  would  still 
prefer  '  during  good  behavior  ;'  but,  being  little  supported  in  that  idea,  he 
was  willing  to  take  the  longest  term  that  could  be  obtained." 

•■'  Mr.  Jacob  Broom  [from  Delaware]  seconded  the  motion." 

"Mr.  Madison. — In  order  to  judge  of  the  form  to  be  given  to  this 
institution,  it  would  be  proper  to  take  a  view  of  the  ends  to  be  served 
by  it.  These  were,  —  first,  to  protect  the  people  against  their  rulers; 
secondly,  to  protect  the  people  against  the  transient  impressions  into 
which  they  themselves  might  be  led.  .  .  Such  being  the  objects  of  the 
second  branch  in  the  proposed  Government,  he  thought  a  considerable 
duration  ought  to  be  given  to  it.  He  did  not  conceive  that  the  term  of 
nine  years  could  threaten  any  real  danger.  .  .  .  He  observed  that,  as 
it  was  more  than  probable  we  were  now  digesting  a  plan,  which,  in  its 
operation,  would  decide  forever  the  fate  of  republican  government,  we 
ought  not  only  to  provide  every  guard  to  liberty  that  its  preservation 
could  require,  but  be  equally  careful  to  supply  the  defects  which  our  own 
experience  had  particularly  pointed  out." 

"  Mr  Read  wished  it  to  be  considered  by  the  small  States  that  it  was 
their  interest  that  we  should  become  one  people  as  much  as  possible  ;  that 
State  attachments  should  be  extinguished  as  much  as  possible ;  that  the 
Senate  should  be  so  constituted  as  to  have  the  feelings  of  citizens  of  the 
whole." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton.  — He  did  not  mean  to  enter  particularly  into  the 
subject.  He  concurred  with  Mr.  Madison  in  thinking  we  were  now  to 
decide  forever  the  fate  of  republican  government ;  and  if  we  did  not  give 
to  that  form  due  stability  and  wisdom,  it  would  be  disgraced  and  lost 
among  ourselves,  disgraced  and  lost  to  mankind  forever.  .  .  He  con- 
curred, also,  in  the  general  observations  of  Mr.  Madison  on  the  subject, 
which  might  be  supported  by  others,  if  it  were  necessary.  It  was  certainly 
true  that  nothing  like  an  equality  of  property  existed  ;  that  an  inequality 
would  exist  as  long  as  liberty  existed,  and  that  it  would  result  from  that 
very  liberty  itself." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  wished  we  could  be  united  in  our  ideas  concerning  a 
permanent  Government.  All  aim  at  the  same  end;  but  there  are  great 
differences  as  to  the  means.  .  .  The  Convention  ought  to  be  extremely 
cautious  in  what  they  hold  out  to  the  people.     ...     If  the  plan  should 

*In  a  generally  approved  history  of  the  Revolution,  it  is  stated  that  the  pecu- 
niary services  of  Robert  Morris  contributed  hardly  less  to  the  success  of  that 
wonderful  struggle,  than  did  the  military  services  of  General  Washington. 


ANCESTORS   WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  27 

be  of  such  a  nature  as  to  rouse  a  violent  opposition,  it  is  easy  to  foresee 
that  discord  and  confusion  will  ensue.  .  .  .  He  admitted  the  evils 
arising  from  a  frequency  of  elections,  and  would  agree  to  give  the  Senate 
a  duration  of  four  or  five  years  A  longer  term  would  defeat  itself.  It 
never  would  be  adopted  by  the  people." 

"  Mb.  Wilson.  —  ....  The  true  reason  why  Great  Britain  has 
not  yet  listened  to  a  commercial  treaty  with  us  has  been,  because  she  has  no 
confidence  in  the  stability  or  efficacy  of  our  Government.  Nine  years,  with 
a  rotation,  will  provide  these  desirable  qualities.  .  .  In  such  a  body, 
the  personal  character  will  be  lost  in  the  political.  The  popuht  r  objection 
against  appointing  any  public  body  for  a  long  term  was  that  it  might,  by 
gradual  encroachments,  prolong  itself,  first,  into  a  body  for  life,  and 
finally  become  a  hereditary  one.  ...  As  one-third  would  go  out 
triennially,  there  would  be  always  three  divisions,  holding  their  places 
for  unequal  terms,  and  consequently  acting  under  the  influence  of  different 
views  and  different  impulses." 

On  the  question  for  nine  years,  Aye,  three ;  No,  eight. 

On  the  question  for  six  years,  Aye,  seven  ;  No,  four. 

The  clause  of  the  fourth  Resolution,  —  "  To  receive  a  com- 
pensation for  their  services/'  — being  under  consideration,  — 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth  moved  to  strike  out  '  to  be  paid  out  of  the  National 
Treasury,'  and  insert  '  to  be  paid  by  their  respective  States.'  " 

"Mr.  Madison  considered  this  as  a  departure  from  a  fundamental 
principle,  and  subverting  the  end  intended,  by  allowing  the  Senate  a 
duration  of  six  years.  .  .  .  The  motion  would  make  the  Senate,  like 
Congress,  the  mere  agents  and  advocates  of  State  interests  and  views, 
instead  of  being  the  impartial  umpires  and  guardians  of  justice  and  the 
general  good." 

"  Mr.  Jonathan  Dayton  [from  New  Jersey]  considered  the  payment  of 
the  Senate  by  the  States  as  fatal  to  their  independence.  He  was  decided 
for  paying  them  out  of  the  National  Treasury."  * 

On  the  question  for  payment  of  the  Senate,  as  moved  by 
Mr.  Ellsworth,  Aye,  five  ;  No,  six. 

On  the  question,  whether  the  words  "  to  be  paid  out  of  the 
National  Treasury"  should  stand,  Aye,  five  ;  No,  six. 

June  21th.  —  A  question  being  proposed  on  the  Resolution 
declaring  "  that  the  suffrage  in  the  first  branch  should  be 
according  to  an  equitable  ratio  "  [of  .representation], —    , 

"  Mr.  Luther  Martin  contended,  at  great  length,  and  with  great  eager- 
ness, that  the  General  Government  was  meant  merely  to  preserve  th^  State 
Governments,  not  to  govern  individuals  ;  that  its  powers  ought  to  be  kept 
within  narrow  limits  .  .  .  That  individuals,  as  such,  have  little  to 
do  but  with  their  own  States.  .  .  .  That  the  States,  like  individuals, 
were  in  a  state  of  nature,  equally  sovereign  and  free.  .  .  .  That  the 
propositions  on  the  table  were  a  system  of  slavery  for  ten  States.  .  .  . 
That  it  will  be  in  vain  to  propose  any  plan  offensive  to  the  rulers  of 
the  States,  whose  influence  over  the  people  will  certainly  prevent  their 
adopting  it  " 

June  2Sth.  —  "  Mr.  Madison  said  he  was  much  disposed  to  concur 
in  any  expedient,  not   inconsistent  with   fundamental    principles,  that 

♦Mr.  Dayton  took  his  seat  in  the  Convention,  June  21s*. 


28  FACTS  TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,    AS  THEIR 

could  remove  the  difficulty  concerning  the  rule  of  representation.  But 
he  could  neither  be  convinced  that  the  rule  contended  for  was  just,  nor 
that  it  was  necessary  for  the  safety  of  the  small  States  against  the  large 
States.  That  it  was  not  just,  had  been  conceded  by  Mr.  Brearly  and 
Mr.  Patterson  themselves.     The  expedient  proposed  by  them  was  a  new 

partition  of  the  territory  of  the  United  States 

The  true  policy  of  the  small  States  lies  in  promoting  those  principles,  and 
that  form  of  Government,  which  will  most  approximate  the  States  to  the 
condition  of  counties.  .  .  .  Give  to  the  General  Government  sufficient 
energy  and  permanency,  and  gradual  partitions  of  the  large,  and  junctions 
of  the  small,  States  will  be  facilitated;  and  time  may  effect  that  equaliza- 
tion which  is  wished  for  by  the  small  States  now,  but  can  never  be  accom- 
plished at  once." 

"  Doctor  [Benjamin]  Franklin.  —  Mr.  President,  the  small  progress  we 
have  made,  after  four  or  five  weeks'  close  attendance  and  continual  reason- 
ings with  each  other,  .  .  is,  methinks,  a  melancholy  proof  of  the  imperfec- 
tion of  the  human  understanding.  .  .  We  have  gone  back  to  ancient 
history  for  models  of  government,  .  .  and  we  have  viewed  modern  States  all 
round  Europe,  but  find  none  of  their  Constitutions  suitable  to  our  circum- 
stances. .  .  In  the  beginning  of  the  contest  with  Great  Britain,  when  we 
were  sensible  of  danger ,  we  had  daily  prayers  in  this  room  for  the  Divine 
protection.  .  .  .  All  of  us,  who  were  engaged  in  the  struggle,  must 
nave  observed  frequent  instances  of  a  superintending  Providence  in  our 
favor.  To  that  kind  Providence  we  owe  this  happy  opportunity  of  consid- 
ering, in  peace,  on  the  means  of  establishing  our  future  National  felicity. 
.  .  .  I  have  lived,  sir,  a  long  time ;  and  the  longer  I  live,  the  more 
convincing  proofs  I  see  of  this  truth,  — that  God  governs  in  the  affairs  of 
men.  ...  I  firmly  believe  this  ;  and  I  also  believe,  that  without  His 
concurring  aid,  we  shall  succeed  in  this  political  building  no  better  than 
the  builders  of  Babel.  We  shall  be  divided  by  our  little  partial  local 
interests  ;  our  projects  will  be  confounded  ;  and  we  ourselves  shall  become 
a  reproach  and  byword  down  to  future  ages. 

"  I  therefore  beg  leave  to  move,  that  henceforth,  prayers,  imploring  the 
Divine  assistance  of  Heaven,  and  its  blessings  on  our  deliberations,  be 
held  in  this  Assembly,  every  morning,  before  we  proceed  to  business." 

The  following  is  Mr.  Madison's  explanation  of  the  manner 
in  which  this  address  was  received  and  disposed  of  in  the 
Convention :  — 

"  Mr.  Sherman  seconded  the  motion." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton  and  several  others  expressed  their  apprehensions, 
that,  however  proper  such  a  Resolution  might  have  been  at  the  beginning 
of  the  Convention,  it  might,  at  this  late  day,  in  the  first  place,  bring  on 
it  some  disagreeable  animadversions  [because  so  long  omitted]  ;  and,  in  the 
second,  lead  the  public  to  believe  that  the  embarrassments  and  dissensions 
within  the  Convention  had  suggested  this  measure." 

"  Mr.  Williamson  observed  that  the  true  cause  of  the  omission  could  not 
be  mistaken.     The  Convention  had  no  funds." 

"Mr.  Randolph  proposed,  in  order  to  give  a  favorable  aspect  to  the 
measure,  that  a  sermon  be  preached,  at  the  request  of  the  Convention,  on 
the  Fourth  of  July,  the  anniversary  of  Independence  ;  and  thenceforward, 
prayers,  etc.,  be  read  in  the  Convention  every  morning." 

"  Doctor  Franklin  seconded  this  motion." 

"After  several  unsuccessful  attempts  for  silent Jy  postponing  this  matter 
by  adjourning,  the  adjournment  was  at  length  carried,  without  any  vote  on 
the  motion." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  29 

June  29th.  — "  Doctor  Johnson  [from  Connecticut],  —  The  controversy 
must  be  endless  whilst  gentlemen  differ  in  the  grounds  of  their  arguments ; 
those  on  one  side  considering  the  States  as  districts  of  people  composing 
one  political  society,  those  on  the  other  considering  them  as  so  many 

political  societies On  the  whole,  he  thought  that,  as 

in  some  respects,  the  States  are  to  be  considered  in  their  political  capacity, 
and  in  others  as  districts  of  individual  citizens,  the  two  ideas  embraced  on 
different  sides,  instead  of  being  opposed  to  each  other,  ought  to  be  com- 
bined ;  that  in  one  branch,  the  people  ought  to  be  represented ;  in  the 
-other,  the  States," 

■"  Me.  Gorham,  — He  conceived  that  a  rupture  of*  the  Union  would  be 
an  event  unhappy  for  all ;  but  surely  the  large  States  would  be  least 
unable  to  take  care  of  themselves On  the  whole,  he  consid- 
ered a  union  of  the  States  as  necessary  to  their  happiness,  and  a  firm 
General  Government  as  necessary  to  their  union.  He  should  consider  it 
his  duty,  if  his  colleagues  viewed  the  matter  in  the  same  light  he  did,  to 
stay  here  as  long  as  any  other  State  would  remain  with  them,  in  order  to 
agree  on  some  plan  that  could,  with  propriety,  be  recommended  to  the 
people. ' ' 

**  Mr.  Ellsworth  did  not  despair.  He  still  trusted  that  some  good  plan 
of  Government  would  be  devised  and  adopted." 

"  Mr.  Read.  —  He  should  have  no  objection  to  the  system  if  it  were 

truly  national,  but  it  has  too  much  of  a  federal  mixture  in  it 

Delaware  had  enjoyed  tranquillity,  and,  he  nattered  himself, would  continue 
to  do  so.  He  was  not,  however,  so  selfish  as  not  to  wish  for  a  good  General 
Government.  In  order  to  obtain  one,  the  whole  States  must  be  incorpo- 
rated. .  ,  They  must  be  done  away.  The  ungranted  lands,  also,  which 
have  been  assumed  by  particular  States,  must  be  given  up.  He  repeated  his 
approbation  of  the  plan  of  Mr.  Hamilton,  and  wished  it  to  be  substituted 
for  that  on  the  table," 

■**  Mr.  Madison  agreed  with  Doctor  Johnson,  that  the  mixed  nature  of 
the  Government  ought  to  be  kept  in  view,  but  thought  too  much  stress 
was  laid  on  the  rank  of  States  as  political  societies.  .  .  He  pointed  out 
the  limitations  on  the  sovereignty  of  the  States,  as  now  confederated.  .  . 
He  entreated  the  gentlemen  representing  the  small  States  to  renounce  a 
principle  which  was  confessedly  unjust ;  which  could  never  be  admitted  ; 
and  which,  if  admitted,  must  infuse  mortality  into  a  Constitution  which 
we  wished  to  last  forever.  He  prayed  them  to  ponder  well  the  conse- 
quences of  suffering  the  Confederacy  to  go  to  pieces.  .  .  The  same 
causes  which  have  rendered  the  Old  World  the  theatre  of  incessant  wars, 
and  have  banished  liberty  from  the  face  of  it,  would  soon  produce  the 

same  effects  here These  consequences,  he  conceived,  ought 

to  be  apprehended,;  whether  the  States  should  run  into  a  total  separation 
from  each  other,  or  should  enter  into  partial  confederacies.  Either  event 
would  be  truly  deplorable ;  and  those  who  might  be  accessory  to  either 
could  never  be  forgiven  by  their  country,  nor  by  themselves." 

"•Colonel  Hamilton  observed  that  individuals  forming  political  socie- 
ties modify  their  rights  differently,  with  regard  to  suffrage.  Examples  of 
it  are  found  in  all  the  States.  .  .  .  But,  as  States  are  a  collection  of 
individual  men,  which  ought  we  to  respect  most,  the  rights  of  the  people 
composing  them,  or  of  the  artificial  beings  resulting  from  the  composition? 
Nothing  could  be  more  preposterous  and  absurd  than  to  sacrifice  the  former 
to  the  latter.  .It  has  been  said,  that  if  the  smaller  States  renounce  their 
equality,  they  renounce  at  the  same  time  their  liberty.  The  truth  is,  it  is 
a '-contest  for  power,  not  for  liberty.  Will  the  men  composing  the  small 
States  be  less  free  than  those  composing  the  larger?  .  .  .  Will  the 
people  of  Delaware  be  less  free,  if  each  citizen  have  an  equal  vote  with 
each  citizen  of  J^ennsylvauia?     .      .      .     No  considerable  inconveniences 


30 

had  been  found  from  the  division  of  the  State  of  New  York  into  districts 
of  different  sizes.  Some  of  the  consequences  of  a  dissolution  of  the  Union, 
and  of  the  establishment  of  partial  confederacies,  have  been  pointed  out. 
lie  would  add  another,  of  a  most  serious  nature.  Alliances  .  .  with 
different  and  hostile  nations  of  Europe,  who  will  make  us  parties  to  all 
their  own  quarrels.  .  .  It  has  been  said,  that  respectability  in  the  eyes 
of  foreign  nations  was  not  the  object  at  which  ws  aimed  ;  that  the  proper 
object  of  republican  government  was  domestic  tranquillity  and  happiness. 
.  .  No  government  could  give  us  tranquillity  and  happiness  at  home, 
which  did  not  possess  sufficient  stability  and  strength  to  make  us  respected 
abroad.  This  was  the  critical  moment  for  forming  such  a  government. 
.  .  As  yet,  we  retain  the  habits  of  union.  We  are  weak,  and  sensible 
of  our  weakness.  Henceforward,  the  motives  will  become  feebler  and  the 
difficulties  greater.  It  is  a  miracle  that  we  are  now  here,  exercising  our 
tranquil  and  free  deliberations  on  the  subject.  It  would  be  madness  to 
trust  to  future  miracles.  A  thousand  causes  must  obstruct  a  reproduction 
of  them."  * 

"Mr.  "William  Pierce  [from  Georgia],  —  The  members  of  Congress 
were  advocates  for  local  advantages.  State  distinctions  must  be  sacrificed, 
as  far  as  the  general  good  required,  but  without  destroying  the  States. 
Though  from  a  small  State,  he  felt  himself  a  citizen  of  the  United  States, 
whose  general  interest  he  would  always  support."  f 

"  Mr.  Gerry  urged  that  we  never  were  independent  States,  were  not 
such  now,  and  never  could  be,  even  on  the  principle  of  the  Confederation. 
.  .  .  The  present  Confederation  he  considered  as  dissolving.  The  fate 
of  the  Union  will  be  decided  by  the  Convention." 

"  Mr  Luther  Martin  remarked,  that  the  language  of  States  being  sov- 
ereign and  independent,  was  once  familiar  and  understood,  though  it 
seemed  now  so  strange  and  obscure." 

"Mr.  Ellsworth.  —  To  the  eastward,  he  was  sure  Massachusetts  was 
the  only  State  that  would  listen  to  a  proposition  for  excluding  the  States, 
as  equal  political  societies,  from  an  equal  voice  in  both  branches.  The 
others  would  risk  every  consequence,  rather  than  part  with  so  dear  a 
right." 

June  30th.  —  "Mr.  Wilson.  —  The  gentleman  from  Connecticut  (Mr. 
Ellsworth)  had  pronounced  that,  if  the  motion  [for  an  equal  vote  in  the 
second  branch]  should  not  be  acceded  to,  of  all  the  States  north  of  Penn- 
sylvania, one  only  would  agree  to  any  General  Government.  ...  He 
hoped  the  alarms  exceeded  their  cause,  and  that  they  would  not  aban- 
don a  country  to  which  they  were  bound  by  so  many  strong  and  endearing 
ties.  .  .  Can  we  forget  for  whom  we  are  forming  a  Government  ?  Is 
it  for  men,  or  for  the  imaginary  beings  called  States  Y  ...  It  is  all  a 
mere  illusion  of  names.  We  talk  of  States  till  we  forget  what  they  are 
composed  of.  .  .  Bad  governments  are  of  two  sorts,  —  first,  that  which 
does  too  little;  secondly,  that  which  does  too  much,  —  that  which  fails 
through  weakness,  and  that  which  destroys  through  oppression.  Under 
which  of  these  evils  do  the  United  States  at  present  groan  ?  Under  the 
weakness  and  inefficiency  of  its  Government.  To  remedy  this  weakness, 
we  have  been  sent  to  this  Convention." 

"Mr.  Madison.  —  He  contended  that  the  States  were  divided  into 
different  interests,  not  by  their  difference  of  size,  but  by  other  circum- 
stances ;  the  most  natural  of  which  resulted  partly  from  climate,  but  prin- 
cipally from  the  effects  of  their  having  or  not  having  slaves.  These  two 
causes  concurred  in  forming  the  great  division  of  the  interests. in  the 
United  States.     It  did  not  lie  between  the  large  and  small  States.     It  lay 

.  *  From  that  day,  Colonel  Hamilton  was  absent  till  August  13th. 
•rt  A  few  of  these  extracts  are  taken  from  Judge  Yates's  Journal.  Mr.  Pierce  took 
his  seat  in  ihe  Convention,  May  Slst. 


ANCESTORS   WERE  GUIDED,  IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  31 

between  the  Northern  and  Southern ;  and,  if  any  defensive  power  were 
necessary,  it  ought  to  be  mutually  given  to  those  two  interests." 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth  assured  the  House  that,  whatever  might  be  thought 
of  the  Representatives  of  Connecticut,  the  State  was  entirely  Federal  in 
her  disposition." 

"  Mr.  Sherman.  —  Congress  is  not  to  blame  for  the  faults  of  the  States. 
Their  measures  have  been  right,  and  the  only  thing  wanting  has  been  a 
further  power  in  Congress  to  render  them  effectual." 

"  Mr.  William  R.  Davie  [from  North  Carolina]  was  much  embarrassed. 
If  a  proportional  representation  was  attended  with  insuperable  difficulties, 
the  making  the  Senate  the  representative  of  the  States  [as  moved  by  Mr. 
Ellsworth]  looked  like  bringing  us  back  to  Congress  again,  and  shutting 
out  all  the  advantages  expected  from  it."  * 

"  Mr  King  observed,  .  .  that  a  reform  would  be  nugatory  and  nominal 
only,  if  we  should  make  another  Congress  of  the  proposed  Senate  ;  that 
if  the  adherence  to  an  equality  of  votes  was  fixed  and  unalterable,  there 
could  not  be  less  obstinacy  on  the  other  side.  .  .  That  he  was,  how- 
ever, filled  with  astonishment,  that,  if  we  were  convinced  that  every  man 
in  America  was  secure  in  all  his  rights,  we  should  be  ready  to  sacrifice 
this  substantial  good  to  the  phantom  of  State  Sovereignty.  That  his 
feelings  were  more  harrowed,  and  his  fears  more  agitated,  for  his  country, 
than  he  could  express  ;  that  he  conceived  this  to  be  the  last  opportunity 
of  providing  for  its  liberty  and  happiness  ;  that  he  could  not,  therefore 
but  repeat  his  amazemement,  that,  when  a  just  Government,  founded  on  a 
fair  representation  of  the  people  of  America,  was  within  our  reach,  we 
should  renounce  the  blessing,  from  an  attachment  to  the  ideal  freedom 
and  importance  of  States.  That,  should  this  wonderful  illusion  continue 
to  prevail,  his  mind  was  prepared  for  every  event,  rather  than  sit  down 
under  a  Government  founded  on  a  vicious  principle  of  representation,  and 
which  must  be  as  short-lived  as  it  would  be  unjust." 

"Mr.  Dayton. — It  should  have  been  shown,  that  the  evils  we  have 
experienced  have  proceeded  from  the  equality  now  objected  to  ;  and  that 
the  seeds  of  dissolution  for  the  State  Governments  are  not  sown  in  the 
General  Government." 

"  Mr.  Martin  would  not  confederate,  if  it  could  not  be  done  on  just 
principles." 

"Mr.  Madison. — -The  plan,  in  its  present  shape,  makes  the  Senate 
absolutely  dependent  on  the  States.  The  Senate,  therefore,  is  only  another 
edition  of  Congress.  He  knew  the  faults  of  that  body,  and  had  used  a 
bold  language  against  it." 

"Mr.  Gunning  Bedford  [from  Delaware]  contended  that  there  was  no 
middle  ground  between  a  perfect  consolidation,  and  a  mere  confederacy,  of 
the  States.  The  first  is  out  of  the  question  ;  and  in  the  latter  they  must 
continue,  if  not  perfectly,  yet  equally,  sovereign.  .  .  The  three  large 
States  have  a  common  interest  to  bind  them  together  in  commerce.  But, 
whether  a  combination,  as  we  supposed,  or  a  competition,  as  others  .sup- 

Eosed,  should  take  place  among  them, —  in  either  case,  the  small  States  will 
e  ruined.  We  must,  like  Solon,  make  such  a  Government  as  the  people 
will  approve.  ...  It  is  not  true  that  the  people  will  not  agree  to 
enlarge  the  powers  of  the  present  Congress.  The  language  of  the  people  has 
been,  that  Congress  ought  to  have  the  power  of  collecting  the  impost,  and  of 
coercing  the  States  where  it  may  be  necessary.  .  .  We  have  been  told,  .  . 
that  this  is  the  last  moment  for  a  fair  trial  in  favor  of  a  good  Government. 
It  will  be  the  last,  indeed,  if  the  propositions  reported  from  the  Committee 
go  forth  to  the  people.    He  was  under  no  apprehensions.    The  large  States 

*  Mr.  Davie  took  his  seat  at  the  opening  of  the  Convention. 


32 

dare  not  dissolve  the  Confederation.  If  they  do,  the  small  ones  will  find 
Borne  foreign  ally,  of  more  honor  and  good  faith,  who  will  take  them  by 
the  hand,  and  do  them  justice.  He  did  not  mean  by  this  to  intimidate  or 
alarm.  It  was  a  natural  consequence,  which  ought  to  be  avoided  by 
enlarging  the  Federal  powers,  not  by  annihilating  the  Federal  system. 
This  is  what  the  people  expect.  All  agree  in  the  necessity  of  a  more 
efficient  Government,  and  why  not  make  such  an  one  as  they  desire  ?  "  * 

"Mr.  Ellsworth.  —  Under  a  National  Government,  he  should  partici- 
pate in  the  national  security,  as  remarked  by  Mr.  King  ;  but  that  was  all. 
What  he  wanted  was  domestic  happiness." 

"Mr.  King  was  for  preserving  the  States  in 'a  subordinate  degree,  and 
as  far  as  they  would  be  necessary  for  the  purposes  stated  by  Mr.  Ells- 
worth. .  .  .  For  himself,  whatever  might  be  his  distress,  he  never 
would  court  relief  from  a  foreign  power. ' ' 

July  2d.  —  "  Mr.  C.  Pinckney.  —  .  .  He  was  extremely  anxious  that 
something  should  be  done,  considering  this  as  the  last  appeal  to  a  regular 
experiment.  Congress  have  failed  in  almost  every  effort  for  an  amend- 
ment of  the  Federal  system.  Nothing  has  prevented  a  dissolution  of  it 
but  the  appointment  of  this  Convention  ;  and  he  could  not  express  his 
alarms  for  the  consequence  of  such  an  event." 

"  General  Pinckney.  —  .  .  Some  compromise  seemed  to  be  necessary, 
the  States  being  equally  divided  on  the  question  for  an  equality  of  votes 
in  the  second  branch.  He  proposed  that  a  Committee,  consisting  of  a 
member  from  each  State,  should  be  appointed  to  devise  and  report  some 
compromise." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin  had  no  objection  to  a  commitment  ;  but  no  modifica- 
tions whatever  could  reconcile  the  smaller  States  to  the  least  diminution 
of  their  equal  sovereignty." 

"  Mr.  Sherman.  —  We  are  now  at  a  full  stop.  .  .  A  Committee  he 
thought  most  likely  to  hit  on  some  expedient." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  [a  delegate  from  Pennsylvania]  thought  a 
Committee  advisable,  as  the  Convention  had  been  equally  divided."  f 

"  Mr.  Randolph  favored  a  commitment,  though  he  did  not  expect  much 
benefit  from  the  expedient." 

"  Mr.  Caleb  Strong  [from  Massachusetts]  was  for  the  commitment." 

"  Mr.  Lansing  would  not  oppose  the  commitment,  though  he  expected 
little  advantage  from  it." 

How  changed  the  prospect  since  the  13th  of  June  !  % 
This  was  indeed  an  appalling  crisis  in  the  business  of  the 
Convention.  It  was  evidently  so  regarded  by  its  members. 
A  number  of  those  members,  however,  doubtless  anticipated 
or  apprehended  such  kind  of  crisis,  from  the  apparent  deter- 
mination evinced  to  procure,  if  possible,  the  substitution  of 
the  plan  proposed  by  Mr.  Patterson,  on  the  \bth  of  June,  § 
for  the  one  proposed  by  Mr.  Randolph,  at  the  beginning. 

"  Mr.  Williamson.  —  If  we  do  not  concede  on  both  sides,  our  business 
■will  soon  be  at  an  end." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  was  for  the  commitment.    Something  must  be  done,  or  we 

*  Mr.  Bedford  took  his  seat  at  the  opening  of  the  Convention. 

fMr.  Morris  was  in  the  Convention  at  its  opening,  but  left  soon  after  the  com- 
mencement of  its  business.  Having  been  so  long  absent,  he  had  now  just  returned 
from  New  York. 

t  See  p.  18.  §  See  p.  18. 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  33 

ehall  disappoint,  not  only  America,  but  the  whole  world.  .  .  Accom- 
modation is  absolutely  necessary,  and  defects  may  be  amended  by  a  future 
Convention." 

M  Mr.  Madison.  —  If  you  appoint  one  from  each  State,  we  shall  have  in 
it  the  whole  force  of  State  prejudices.  The  great  difficulty  is  to  conquer 
former  opinions.  The  motion  of  the  gentleman  from  South  Carolina  can 
be  as  well  decided  here  as  in  committee." 

The  Committee  was  appointed  by  ballot.  It  consisted  of 
"Mr.  Gerry,  Mr.  Ellsworth,  Mr.  Yates,  Mr.  Patterson, 
Dr.  Franklin,  Mr.  Bedford,  Mr.  Martin,  Mr.  Mason,  Mr. 
Davie,  Mr.  Rutledge,  Mr.  Baldwin." 

The  Convention  then  adjourned  to  Thursday,  July  5th. 

July  5ih.  —  "The  Report  of  the  Committee  was  read.'7 

"  That,  in  the  first  branch  of  the  Legislature,  each  of  the 
States  now  in  the  Union  be  allowed  one  member  for  every 
forty  thousand  inhabitants.  .  .  That  each  State,  not  con- 
taining that  number,  shall  be  allowed  one  member. 

"  That  all  bills  for  raising  or  appropriating  money,  and  for 
fixing  the  salaries  of  the  officers  of  the  government  of  the 
United  States,  shall  originate  in  the  first  branch  ;  .  .  .  and 
that  no  money  shall  be  drawn  from  the  public  Treasury,  but 
in  pursuance  of  appropriations  to  be  originated  in  the  first 
branch. 

"  That,  in  the  second  branch  of  the  Legislature,  each  State 
shall  have  an  equal  vote." 

"  Mr.  Gorham.  — I  call  for  an  explanation  of  the  principles  on  which 
it  [the  Report]  is  grounded." 

"  Mr.  Martin.  —  The  one  representation  is  proposed  as  an  expedient  foi 
the  adoption  of  the  other." 

"  Mr.  Wilson. —  The  Committee  have  exceeded  their  powers." 

"  Mr.  Martin  proposed  to  take  the  question  on  the  whole  of  the  Report.* 

"  Mr.  Wilson.  —  I  do  not  choose  to  take  a  leap  in  the  dark.  I  have  a 
right  to  call  for  a  division  of  the  question  on  each  distinct  proposition." 

"  Mr  Madison  could  not  regard  the  privilege  of  originating  money  bills 
as  any  concession  on  the  side  of  the  small  States.  Experience  proved  that 
it  had  no  effect.  .  .  It  was  in  vain  to  purchase  concord  in  the  Conven- 
tion on  terms  which  would  perpetuate  discord  among  their  constituents. 
The  Convention  ought  to  pursue  a  plan  which  would  bear  the  test  of 
examination,  which  would  be  espoused  and  supported  by  the  enlightened 
and  impartial  part  of  America  ;  and  which  they  could  themselves  vindicate 
and  urge.  .  .  The  merits  of  the  system  alone  can  finally  and  effectually 
obtain  the  public  suffrage.  He  was  not  apprehensive  that  the  people  of 
the  small  States  would  obstinately  refuse  to  accede  to  a  Government 
founded  on  just  principles,  and  promising  them  substantial  protection. 
....  Harmony  in  the  Convention  was,  no  doubt,  much  to  be  desired. 
Satisfaction  to  all  the  States,  in  the  first  instance,  still  more  so.  But  if 
the  principal  States,  comprehending  a  majority  of  the  people  of  the  United 
States,  should  concur  in  a  just  and  judicious  plan,  he  had  the  firmest  hopes 
that  all  the  other  States  would  by  degrees  accede  to  it." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  .  .  He  came  here  as  a  Representative 
of  America ;    he  flattered  himself  he  came  here,  in  some  degree,  as  a 


34  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,    AS  THEIR 

Representative  of  the  whole  human  race  ;  for  the  whole  human  race  will 
be  affected  by  the  proceedings  of  this  Convention.  He  wished  gentlemen 
to  extend  their  views  beyond  the  present  moment  of  time,  beyond  the 
narrow  limits  of  place  from  which  they  derive  their  political  origin.  If 
he  were  to  believe  some  things  which  he  had  heard,  he  should  suppose 
that  we  were  assembled  to  truck  and  bargain  for  our  particular  States. 
He  cannot  descend  to  think  that  any  gentlemen  are  really  actuated  by  these 
views.  We  must  look  forward  to  the  effects  of  what  we  do.  These  alone 
ought  to  guide  us.  Much  has  been  said  of  the  sentiments  of  the  people. 
They  are  unknown.  They  could  not  be  known.  All  that  we  can  infer,  is, 
that  if  the  plan  we  recommend  be  reasonable  and  right,  all  who  have  reason- 
able minds  and  sound-  intentions  will  embrace  it,  notwithstanding  what 
has  been  said  by  some  gentlemen.  Let  us  suppose  that  the  larger  States 
shall  agree,  and  that  the  smaller  refuse  ;  and  let  us  trace  the  consequences. 
.  .  This  country  must  be  united.  If  persuasion  does  not  unite  it,  the  sword 
will.  He  begged  this  consideration  might  have  its  weight.  The  scenes  of 
horror  attending  civil  commotions  cannot  be  described  ;  and  the  conclusion 
of  them  will  be  worse  than  the  term  of  their  continuance.  .  .  State 
attachments  and  State  importance  have  been  the  bane  of  this  country. 
We  cannot  annihilate,  but  we  may  perhaps  take  out  the  teeth  of,  the  ser- 
pents. He  wished  our  ideas  to  be  enlarged  to  the  true  interest  of  man, 
instead  of  being  circumscribed  within  the  narrow  compass  of  a  particular 
spot.  And,  after  alj,  how  little  can  be  the  motive  yielded  by  selfishness 
for  such  a  policy?  Who  can  say  whether  he  himself,  much  less  whether 
his  children,  will  the  next  yea/be  an  inhabitant  of  this  or  that  State?  " 

"  Mr.  Bedford.  —  .  .  No  man  can  foresee  to  what  extremities  the  small 
States  may  be  driven  by  oppression.  .  .  .  The  smaller  States  have 
conceded  as  to  the  constitution  of  the  first  branch,  and  as  to  money  bills. 
If  they  be  not  gratified  by  correspondent  concessions  as  to  the  second 
branch,  is  it  to  be  supposed  that  they  will  ever  accede  to  the  plan?  And 
what  will  be  the. consequence,  if  nothing  should  be  done?  The  condition 
of  the  United  States  requires  that  something  should  be  immediately  done. 
It  is  better  that  a  defective  plan  should  be  adopted,  than  that  none  should 
be  recommended.  He  saw  no  reason  why  defects  might  not  be  supplied 
by  meetings  ten,  fifteen,  or  twenty  years  hence." 

"  Mr.  Gerry. —  Though  he  had  assented  to  the  Report  in  the  Committee, 
he  had  very  material  objections  to  it.  We  were,  however,  in  a  peculiar 
situation.  We  were  neither  the  same  nation,  nor  different  nations.  We 
ought  not,  therefore,  to  pursue  the  one  or  the  other  of  these  ideas  too 
closely.  If  no  compromise  should  take  place,  .  .  a  secession ,  he  foresaw, 
would  take  place  ;  for  some  gentlemen  seemed  decided  on  it.  Two  different 
plans  would  be  proposed,  and  the  result  no  man  could  foresee." 

July  6th.  —  "  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  moved  to  commit 
so  much  of  the  Report  as  relates  to  one  member  for  every 
forty  thousand  inhabitants." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  seconded  the  motion,  but  with  a  view  of  leaving  the 
Committee  under  no  implied  shackles." 

"  Mr.  Goriiam  apprehended  great  inconvenience  from  fixing  directly 
the  number  of  Representatives  to  be  allowed  to  each  State.  He  thought  the 
number  of  inhabitants  the  true  guide ;  though  perhaps  some  departure 
might  be  expedient  from  the  full  proportion." 

"  Mr.  Gerry. —  .  .  He  favored  the  commitment,  and  thought  that 
representation  ought  to  be  in  the  combined  ratio  of  numbers  of  inhabi- 
tants and  of  wealta,  and  not  of  either  singly." 

"  Mr.  King  wished  the  clause  to  be  committed,  chiefly  in  order  to  detach 
it  from  the  Raport,  with  which  it  had  no  connection." 


ANCESTORS   WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  35 

"  Mr.  Pinckney  saw  no  good  reason  for  committing.  The  value  of  land 
had  been  found,  on  full  investigation,  to  be  an  impracticable  rule.*  .  . 
The  number  of  inhabitants  appeared  to  him  the  only  just  and  practicable 
rule." 

Mr.  Morris's  motion  prevailed  ;  and  the  Committee  was 
appointed,  consisting  of  five  members. 

July  Wi.  —  The  question,  —  "Shall  the  clause  allowing 
each  State  one  vote  in  the  second  branch  stand  in  the 
Report  ?  "  —  being  taken  up,  — 

"  Mr.  Gerry. —  .  .  He  had  rather  agree  to  it  than  have  no  accommo- 
dation. A  Government,  short  of  a  proper  national  plan,  if  generally 
acceptable,  would  be  preferable  to  a  proper  one  which,  if  it  could  be 
carried  at  all,  would  operate  on  discontented  States.  He  thought  it  would 
be  best  to  suspend  the  question  till  the  Committee  appointed  yesterday 
should  make  report." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  supposed  that  it  was  the  wish  of  every  one  that  some 
General  Government  should  be  established." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  was  not  deficient  in  a  conciliatory  temper  ;  but,  .  .  con- 
ciliation .  .  was  pursued  here  rather  among  the  Representatives,  than 
among  the  constituents  ;  and  it  would  be  of  little  consequence  if  not  estab- 
lished among  the  latter.  There  could  be  little  hope  of  its  being  established 
among  them,  if  the  foundation  should  not  be  laid  in  justice  and  right." 

On  the  question,  —  "  Shall  the  words  stand  as  part  of  the 
Report  ?  "  —  Aye,  six  ;  No,  three. 

"  Mr.  Patterson  would  not  decide  whether  the  privilege  concerning 
money  bills  were  a  valuable  consideration,  or  not  ;  but,  .  .  after  the 
establishment  of  that  point  [the  rule  of  representation  in  the  first  branch], 
the  small  States  would  never  be  able  to  defend  themselves  without  an 
equality  of  votes  in  the  second  branch.  There  was  no  other  ground  of 
accommodation.  His  resolution  was  fixed.  He  would  meet  the  large  States 
on  that  ground,  and  no  other." 

"Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris. — He  had  no  resolution  unalterably  fixed, 
except  to  do  what  should  finally  appear  to  him  right.  He  was  against  the 
Report,  because  it  maintained  the  improper  constitution  of  the  second 
branch.  It  made  it  another  Congress.  .  .  It  had  been  said  by  Mr. 
Gerry,  that  the  new  Government  would  be  partly  National,  partly 
Federal ;  that  it  ought,  in  the  first  quality,  to  protect  individuals  ;  in  the 
second,  the  State.  But,  in  what  quality  was  it  to  protect  the  aggregate 
interest  of  the  whole?  .  .  It  had  been  one  of  our  greatest  misfortunes, 
that  the  great  objects  of  the  Nation  had  been  sacrificed  constantly  to  local 
views.  .  .  .  We  must  have  an  efficient  Government ;  and  if  there  be 
an  efficiency  in  the  local  [State]  Governments,  the  former  is  impossible. 
.  .  He  will  be  ready  to  join  in  devising  such  an  amendment  of  the  plan 
as  will  be  most  likely  to  secure  our  liberty  and  happiness." 

July  9th. — "Mr.  Daniel  Carroll  [from  Maryland]  took  his  seat." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  delivered  a  Report  from  the 
Committee  of  five  members"  [appointed  on  the  6th]. 

"  Mr.  Sherman  moved  to  refer  the  first  part,  apportioning  Representa- 
tives, to  a  Committee  of  a  member  from  each  State." 

*  The  "  value  of  land  "  adopted  in  the  Confederation  as  the  rule  to  govern  the 
States,  in  levying  their  respective  proportions  to  supply  the  "  common  Treasury." 


36 

M  Mr  Gouverneur  Morris  seconded  the  motion.  .  .  The  Report  is 
little  more  than  a  guess.  Wealth  was  not  altogether  disregarded  by  the 
Committee.  .  .  The  Committee  meant  little  more  than  to  bring  the 
matter  to  a  point  for  the  consideration  of  the  House." 

"Mr.  Randolph  disliked  the  Report  of  the  Committee,  but  had' been 
unwilling  to  object  to  it.  .  .  He  was  in  favor  of  a  commitment  to  a 
member  from  each  State." 

"  Mr.  Butler  urged  warmly  the  justice  and  necessity  of  regarding 
wealth  in  the  apportionment  of  Representatives." 

On  the  question  for  committing  to  a  member  from  each 
State,  as  moved  by  Mr.  Sherman,  Aye,  nine  ;  No,  two. 

"The  Committee  appointed  were  Messrs.  King,  Sherman, 
Yates,  Brearly,  Gouverneur  Morris,  Read,  Carroll,  Madi- 
son, Williamson,  Rutledge,  Houston." 

July  10th.  —  "Mr.  King  reported,  from  the  Committee 
yesterday  appointed,  that  the  States,  at  the  first  meeting  of 
the  General  Legislature,  should  be  represented  by  sixty-five 
members;  .  .  to  wit,  —  New  Hampshire,  by  three;  Massa- 
chusetts, eight ;  Rhode  Island,  one  ;  Connecticut,  five ;  New 
York,  six;  New  Jersey,  four;  Pennsylvania,  eight;  Dela- 
ware, one  ;  Maryland,  six ;  Virginia,  ten ;  North  Carolina, 
five  ;  South  Carolina,  five  ;  Georgia,  three." 

"  Mr.  John  Rutledge  [from  South  Carolina]  moved  that  New  Hamp- 
shire be  reduced  from  three  to  two  members."  % 

"  General  Pinckney  seconds  the  motion." 

"  Mr.  King.  —  New  Hampshire  has  probably  more  than  one  hundred  and 
twenty  thousand  inhabitants,  and  has  an  extensive  country  of  tolerable 
fertility.     Its  inhabitants  may  therefore  be  expected  to  increase  fast." 

"  General  Pinckney.  —  The  Report,  before  it  was  committed,  was  more 
favorable  to  the  Southern  States  than  as  it  now  stands." 

"  Mr.  Williamson  was  not  for  reducing  New  Hampshire  from  three  to 
two,  but  for  reducing  some  others." 

"  General  Pinckney  urged  the  reduction  ;  dwelt  on  the  superior  wealth 
of  the  Southern  States,  and  insisted  on  its  having  its  due  weight  in  the 
Government." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  regretted  the  turn  of  the  debate.  The  States, 
he  found,  had  many  Representatives  on  the  floor.  Few,  he  feared,  were  to 
be  deemed  the  Representatives  of  America.  He  thought  the  Southern 
States  have  by  the  Report,  more  than  their  share  of  representation.  Prop- 
erty ought  to  have  its  weight,  but  not  all  the  weight.  .  .  He  was 
against  reducing  New  Hampshire." 

On  the  question  for  reducing  New  Hampshire,  from  three 
to  two  Representatives,  Aye,  two  ;  No,  eight. 

It  would  seem  hardly  consistent  to  omit  the  insertion  of  the 
following  significant  letter,  so  illustrative  of  its  author's  views 
as  to  the  proceedings  and  prospective  issue  of  the  Conven- 
tion,—  especially  as  to  those  parts  of  the  proceedings  which 
were  the  objects  of  the  particular  allusions  it  contains  :  — 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  37 


General  Washington  to  Colonel  Hamilton. 

"Philadelphia,  10th  July,  1787.  • 
"Dear  Sir,  —  I  thank  you  for  your  communication  of  the  3d  instant. 
When  I  refer  you  to  the  state  of  the  counsels  which  prevailed  at  the  period 
you  left  this  city  [June  29th],  and  add  that  they  are  now,  if  possible,  in  a 
worse  train  than  ever,  you  will  find  but  little  ground  on  which  the  hope  of 
a  good  establishment  can  be  formed.  In  a  word,  I  almost  despair  of  seeing 
a  favorable  issue  to  the  proceedings  of  our  Convention,  and  do  therefore 
repent  having  had  any  agency  in  the  business.  The  men  who  oppose  a 
strong  and  energetic  Government,  are,  in  my  opinion,  narrow-minded  poli- 
ticians, or  are  under  the  influence  of  local  views.  The  apprehension 
expressed  by  them,  that  the  people  will  not  accede  to  the  form  proposed, 
is  the  ostensible,  not  the  real,  cause  of  opposition.  But,  admitting  that 
the  present  sentiment  is  as  they  prognosticate,  the  proper  question  ought 
nevertheless  to  be,  —  Is  it,  or  is  it  not,  the  best  form  that  such  a  country  as 
this  can  adopt?  If  it  be  the  best,  recommend  it ;  and  it  will  assuredly 
obtain,  maugre  opposition.  I  am  sorry  you  went  away.  I  wish  you  were 
back.  The  crisis  is  equally  important  and  alarming.  No  opposition, 
under  such  circumstances,  should  discourage  exertions  till  the  signature 
is  offered.  I  will  not  at  this  time  trouble  you  with  more  than  my  best 
wishes  and  sincere  regard. 

44 1  am,  dear  sir,  etc."  * 

"  General  Pinckney,  and  Mr.  Alexander  Martin  [from  North  Caro- 
lina], moved  '  that  six  Representatives,  instead  of  five,'  be  allowed  to  North 
Carolina." 

On  the  question,  Aye,  three  ;  No,  seven. 

"  General  Pinckney,  and  Mr.  Pierce  Butler  [from  South  Carolina], 
made  the  same  motion  in  favor  of  South  Carolina." 

On  the  question,  Aye,  four ;  No,  seven. 

11  General  Pinckney,  and  Mr.  William  Houston  [from  Georgia],  moved 
*  that  Georgia  be  allowed  four  instead  of  three  Representatives ; '  urging  the 
unexampled  celerity  of  its  population." 

On  the  question,  Aye,  four ;  No,  seven. 

On  the  question  for  agreeing  to  the  appointment  of  Rep- 
resentatives, as  amended  by  the  last  Committee,  Aye,  nine  ; 
No,  two. 

JulylZth.  —  "Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  The  train  of  business,  and 
the  late  turn  which  it  had  taken,  had  led  him  into  deep  meditation  on  it ; 
and  he  would  candidly  state  the  result.  A  distinction  had  been  set 
up,  and  urged,  between  the  Northern  and  Southern  States.  He  had 
hitherto  considered  this  doctrine  as  heretical.  He  still  thought  the  dis- 
tinction groundless.  He  sees,  however,  that  it  is  persisted  in ;  and  the 
Southern  gentlemen  will  not  be  satisfied,  unless  they  see  the  way  open  to 
their  gaining  a  majority  in  the  public  councils.  The  consequence  of  such 
a  transfer  of  power  from  the  maritime  to  the  interior  and  landed  interest, 
will,  he  foresees,  be  such  an  oppression  to  commerce,  that  he  shall  be 

*  It  is  recommended  to  re-examine,  in  connection  with  this  letter,  the  extract  of 
the  one  dated  March  31st,  1783;  p.  13.  In  this  may  be  noticed  a  reference  to  one 
letter;  and  iu  that  extract  a  reference  to  two,  previously  received  from  Colonel 
Hamilton.  In  them  appears  the  same  devoted  and  interested  attention  to  the 
common  cause,  the  same  coincidence  of  political  views,  and  the  same  concurrence 
of  exertions  to  promote  that  cause,  which  characterzied  all  their  correspondence 
from  the  spring  of  1777. 

lhc  above  letter  may  be  found,  in  the  "Writings  of  Washington,"  by  Doctor 
Sp  uks,  vol.  ix.  p.  260. 


38 

obliged  to  vote  for  the  vicious  principle  of  equality  in  the  second  branch, 
in  order  to  provide  some  defence  for  the  Northern  States  against  it..  .  .  . 
There  can  be  no  end  of  demands  for  security,  if  every  particular  interest 
is  to  be  entitled  to  it.  The  Eastern  States  may  claim  it  for  .  .  .  other 
objects,  as  the  Southern  States  claim  it  for  their  peculiar  objects.  In  this 
struggle  between  the  two  ends  of  the  Union,  what  part  ought  the  Middle 
States,  in  point  of  policy,  to  take?  To  join  their  Eastern  brethren, 
according  to  his  ideas." 

July  14th.  —  "Mr.  L.  Martin  called  for  the  question  on  the  whole 
Report,  including  the  parts  relating  to  the  origination  of  money  bills,  and 
the  equality  of  votes  in  the  second  branch." 

"  Mr.  Rutledge  proposed  to  reconsider  the  two  propositions  touching 
the  originating  of  money  bills  in  the  first,  and  the  equality  of  votes  in  the 
second,  branch." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  was  for  the  question  on  the  whole  at  once." 

11  Mr.  L.  Martin  urged  the  question  on  the  whole." 

"  Mr.  Dayton.  — The  smaller  States  can  never  give  up  their  equality. 
For  himself,  he  would  in  no  event  yield  that  security  for  their  rights." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  urged  the  equality  of  votes." 

"  Mr.  King.  — He  considered  the  proposed  Government  as  substantially 
and  formally  a  General  and  National  Government  over  the  people  of 
America.  There  never  will  be  a  case  in  which  it  will  act  as  a  Federal 
Government  on  the  States  and  not  on  the  individual  citizens.  And  is  it 
not  a  clear  principle  that,  in  a  free  government,  those  who  are  to  be  the 
objects  of  a  government  ought  to  influence  the  operations  of  it?  . 
The  General  Government  can  never  wish  to  intrude  on  the  State  Govern- 
ments There  could  be  no  temptation.  None  had  been  pointed  out.  In 
order  to  prevent  the  interference  of  measures  which  seemed  most  likely  to 
happen,  he  would  have  no  objection  to  throwing  all  the  State  debts  into 
the  Federal  debt,  making  one  aggregate  debt  of  about  seventy  million 
dollars,  and  leaving  it  to  be  discharged  by  the  General  Government.  .  . 
He  was  sure  that  no  government  would  last  that  was  not  founded  on  just 
principles.  He  preferred  the  doing  of  nothing,  to  an  allowance  of  an 
equal  vote  to  all  the  States.  It  would  be  better,  he  thought,  to  submit 
to  a  little  more  confusion  and  convulsion,  than  to  submit  to  such  an  evil." 

"Mr.  Strong.  —  The  Convention  had  been  much  divided  in  opinion. 
In  order  to  avoid  the  consequences  of  it,  an  accommodation  had  been 

Eroposed.  A  committee  had  been  appointed.  .  .  It  is  agreed,  on  all 
ands,  that  Congress  are  nearly  at  an  end.  If  no  accommodation  takes 
place,  the  Union  itself  must  soon  be  dissolved.  .  .  He  thought  the 
small  States  had  made  a  considerable  concession,  in  the  article  of  money 
bills,  and  that  they  might  naturally  expect  some  concessions  on  the  other 
side.  From  this  view  of  the  matter,  he  was  compelled  to  give  his  vote  for 
the  Report  taken  together." 

"  Mr.  Madison  expressed  his  apprehensions,  that,  if  the  proper  founda- 
tion of  government  was  destroyed,  by  substituting  an  equality  in  place  of 
a  proportional  representation,  no  proper  structure  would  be  raised.  .  . 
He  reminded  them  [the  small  States]  of  the  consequences  of  laying  the 
existing  Confederation  on  improper  principles.  All  the  principal  parties 
to  its  compilation  joined  immediately  in  mutilating  and  fettering  the 
Government  in  such  a  manner,  that  it  has  disappointed  every  hope  placed 
on  it.  He  appealed  to  the  doctrine  and  arguments  used  by  themselves  on 
a  former  occasion.  .  .  .  He  called  for  a  single  instance,  in  which  the 
General  Government  was  not  to  operate  on  the  people  individually.  The 
practicability  of  making  laws,  with  coercive  sanctions,  for  the  States  as 
political  bodies,  had  been  exploded  on  all  hands.  .  .  No  one  would  say 
that,  in  Congress  or  out  of  Congress,  Delaware  had  equal  weight  with 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  39 

Pennsylvania.  .  .  It  seemed  now  to  be  pretty  well  understood,  that 
the  real  difference  of  interests  lay,  not  between  the  large  and  small,  but 
between  the  Northern  and  Southern  States.  The  institution  of  slavery, 
and  its  consequences,  formed  the  line  of  discrimination." 

"  Mr.  Wilson.  —  .  .  A  vice  in  the  representation,  like  an  error  in 
the  first  concoction,  must  be  followed  by  disease,  convulsions,  and  finally, 
death  itself.  The  justice  of  the  general  principle  of  proportional  repre- 
sentation has  not,  in  argument  at  least,  been  yet  contradicted.  .  .  . 
The  great  fault  of  the  existing  Confederacy  is  its  inactivity.  .  .  To 
remedy  this  defect,  we  were  sent  here.  Shall  we  effect  the  cure  by  estab- 
lishing an  equality  of  votes,  as  is  proposed  ?  No  ;  this  very  equality  carries 
us  directly  to  Congress,  —  to  the  system  which  it  is  our  duty  to  rectify." 

July  16th.  —  "  On  the  question  for  agreeing  to  the  whole 
Report,  as  amended,  and  including  the  equality  of  votes  in 
the  second  branch,"  Aye,  five ;  No,  four. 

"  Mr,  Randolph.  — The  vote  of  this  morning  (involving  an  equality  of 
suffrage  in  the  second  branch)  had  embarrassed  the  business  extremely. 
All  the  powers  given  in  the  Report  from  the  Committee  of  the  Whole  were 
founded  on  the  supposition  that  a  proportional  representation  was  to  prevail 
in  both  branches  of  the  Legislature.  .  .  .  He  could  not  but  think 
we  were  unprepared  to  discuss  this  subject  further.  .  .  He  wished  the 
Convention  to  adjourn,  that  the  large  States  might  consider  the  steps 
proper  to  be  taken,  in  the  present  solemn  crisis  of  the  business  ;  and  that 
the  small  States  might  also  deliberate  on  the  means  of  conciliation." 

"  Mr.  Patterson.  —  No  conciliation  could  be  admissible,  on  the  part 
of  the  smaller  States,  on  any  other  ground  than  that  of  an  equality  of 
votes  in  the  second  branch.  If  Mr.  Randolph  would  reduce  to  form  his 
motion  for  an  adjournment  sine  die,  he  would  second  it  with  all  his  heart." 

"  Mr  Randolph  had  never  entertained  an  idea  of  an  adjournment  sine 
die ;  and  was  sorry  that  his  meaning  had  been  so  readily  and  strangely 
misinterpreted.  He  had  in  view  merely  an  adjournment  till  tomorrow, 
in  order  that  some  conciliatory  experiment  might,  if  possible,  be  devised." 

"  Mr.  Patterson  seconded  the  adjournment  till  tomorrow  ;  as  an  oppor- 
tunity seemed  to  be  wished  by  the  larger  States  to  deliberate  further  on 
conciliatory  expedients." 

"Mr.  Broom  thought  it  his  duty  to  declare  his  opinion  against  an 
adjournment  sine  die,  as  had  been  urged  by  Mr.  Patterson.  Such  a 
measure,  he  thought,  would  be  fatal.  Something  must  be  done  by  the 
Convention,  though  it  should  be  by  a  bare  majority." 

"  Mr.  Rutledge  could  see  no  need  of  an  adjournment,  because  he  could 
see  no  chance  of  a  compromise.  The  little  States  were  fixed.  They  had 
repeatedly  and  solemnly  declared  themselves  to  be  so.  All  the  large 
States,  then,  had  to  do,  was  to  decide  whether  they  would  yield  or  not. 
For  his  part,  he  conceived,  that,  although  we  could  not  do  what  we  thought 
best  in  itself,  we  ought  to  do  something." 

"  Mr.  Randolph  and  Mr.  King  renewed  the  motion  to  adjourn  till  to- 
morrow." 

On  the  question,  Aye,  seven  ;  No,  two. 

The  Convention  accordingly  adjourned. 

From  Mr.  Madison's  description,  as  follows,  the  result  of 
the  adjournment  appears  to  have  greatly  disappointed  the 
mover  and  several  others:  — 


40 

"  On  the  morning  following,  before  the  hour  of  the  Convention,  a 
number  of  the  members  .  .  met  for  the  purpose  of  consulting  on  the 
proper  steps  to  be  taken.  .  .  The  time  was  wasted  in  vague  conversa- 
tion on  the  subject  .  .  It  appeared,  indeed,  that  the  opinions  of  the 
members,  who  disliked  the  equality  of  votes,  differed  much  as  to  the 
importance  of  that  point,  and  as  to  the  policy  of  risking  a  failure  of  any 
general  act  of  the  Convention  by  inflexibly  opposing  it.  Several  of  them, 
supposing  that  no  good  government  could  or  would  be  built  on  that  foun- 
dation, ....  would  have  concurred  in  a  firm  opposition  to  the  smaller 
States,  and  on  a  separate  recommendation,  if  eventually  necessary.  Others 
seemed  inclined  to  yield  to  the  smaller  States,  and  to  concur  in  such  an 
act,  however  imperfect  and  exceptionable,  as  might  be  agreed  on  by  the 
Convention  as  a  body,  though  decided  by  a  bare  majority  of  States  and  by 
a  minority  of  the  people  of  the  United  States."  * 

July  11th.  —  "Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  moved  to  recon- 
sider the  whole  Resolution  agreed  to  yesterday  concerningthe 
constitution   of  the  two  branches  of  the  Legislature." 

Mr.  Madison  states  that  "This  motion  was  not  seconded  ; 
but  was  probably  approved  by  several  members,  who  eithei 
despaired  of  success,  or  were  apprehensive  that  the  attempt 
would  inflame  the  jealousies  of  the  smaller   States." 

The  clause,  —  "To  negative  all  laws  passed  by  the  several 
States  contravening,  in  the  opinion  of  the  National  Legisla- 
ture, the  Articles  of  Union,  or  any  treaties  subsisting  under 
the  authority  of  the  Union,"  —  was  ta^en  up. 

"Mr.  Madison  considered  the  negative  on  the  laws  of  the  States  as 
essential  to  the  efficacy  and  security  of  the  General  Government.  The 
necessity  of  a  General  Government  proceeds  from  the  propensity  of  the 
States  to  pursue  their  particular  interests,  in  opposition  to>  the  general 
interest.  This  propensity  will  continue  to  disturb  the  system  unless  effec- 
tually controlled.  Nothing  short  of  a  negative  on  their  laws  will  control 
it.     .  Confidence  cannot  be  put  in  the  State  tribunals  as  guardians  of 

the  National  authority  and  interests." 

"  Mr.  Pinckney  urged  the  necessity  of  the  negative."  f 

"On  the  question  for  agreeing  to  the  power,  Aye,  three; 
No,  seven." 

The  clause  —  "That  a  National  Executive  be  instituted, 
to  consist  of  a  single  person,"  —  was  agreed  to,  nem.  con. 

The  next  clause,  —  "  To  be  chosen  by  the  National  Legis- 
lature," —  being  considered,  — 

"Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  was  pointedly  against  his  being  so  chosen. 
He  will  be  the  mere  creature  of  the  Legislature.  .  ►  .  He  ought  to 
be  elected  by  the  people  at  large.  .  .  He *moved  to  strike  out  fc  National 
Legislature,'  and  insert  'citizens  of  the  United  States.'  " 

"  Mr.  Sherman  thought  that  the  sense  of  the  Nation  would  be  better 
expressed  by  the  Legislature,  than  by  the  people  at  large." 

"  Colonel  Mason.  — .  .  .  He  conceived  it  would  be  as  unnatural  to 
refer  the  choice  of  a  proper  character  for  Chief  Magistrate  to  the  people, 
as  it  would,  to  refer  a  trial  of  colors  to  a  blind  man." 

*  This  crisis,  on  the  16th  of  July,  is  worthy  of  particular  notice,,  as  having 
probably  appeared  then  even  more  solemn  and  appalling  than  that,,  on  the  2n<i; 
as  S(en,  p.  3'2. 

t  See  Mr.  Pinckney's  motion,  seconded  by  Mr.  Madison,  June  9th;  p.  16. 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  41 

On  the  question  for  an  election  by  the  people,  instead  of 
the  Legislature,  Aye,  one  ;  No,  nine. 

On  the  question,  u  to  be  chosen  by  the  National  Legisla- 
ture," Aye,  unanimously. 

On  the  question,  "  For  the  term  of  seven  years,  to  be  in- 
eligible a  second  time,"  — 

u  Mr.  Houston  moved  to  strike  out,  '  to  be  ineligible  a 
second  time.'  " 

On  the  question  for  striking  out,  as  moved  by  Mr.  Hous- 
ton, Aye,  six  ;  No,  four. 

The  clause,  "  for  the  term  of  seven  years,"  being  resumed, — 

"  Doctor  James  McClurg  [of  Virginia],  moved  to  strike  out  '  seven 
years,'  and  insert  '  during  good  behavior.'  By  striking  out  the  words, 
declaring  him  ineligble  [a  second  time],  he  was  put  into  a  situation  that 
would  keep  him  dependent  forever  on  the  Legislature  ;  and  he  conceived 
the  independence  of  the  Executive  to  be  equally  essential  with  that  of  the 
Judiciary  department." 

11  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  seconded  the  motion.  He  expressed  great 
pleasure  in  hearing  it.     This  was  the  way  to  get  a  good  Government." 

"  Mr.  Broom  highly  approved  the  motion.  It  obviated  all  his  difficulties. " 

"Mr.  Madison.  —  If  it  be  essential  to  the  preservation  of  liberty,  that 
the  Legislative,  Executive,  and  Judiciary  powers  be  separate,  it  is  essen- 
tial to  a  maintenance  of  the  separation,  that  they  should  be  indepen- 
dent of  each  other.  Th^plxecutive  could  not  be  independent  of  the 
Legislature,  if  dependent  on  the  pleasure  of  that  branch  for  a  reappoint- 
ment. .  .  There  was  an  analogy  between  the  Executive  and  Judiciary 
departments  in  several  respects.  .  .  It  might  be  more  dangerous  to 
3uffer  a  union  between  the  Executive  and  Legislative  powers,  than  between 
the  Judiciary  and  Legislative  powers.  He  conceived  it  to  be  absolutely 
necessary  to  a  well  constituted  Republic,  that  the  two  first  should  be  kept 
distinct  and  independent  of  each  other." 

"  Colonel  Mason. — He  considered  an  Executive  during  good  behavior 
as  a  softer  name  only,  for  an  Executive  for  life  ;  and  that  the  next  would 
be  an  easy  step  to  hereditary  monarchy.  If  the  motion  should  finally 
succeed,  he  might  himself  live  to  see  such  a  revolution.  .  .  No  State, 
he  was  sure,  had  so  far  revolted  from  Republican  principles,  as  to  have  the 
least  bias  in  its  favor." 

"  Mr.  Madison  was  not  apprehensive  of  being  thought  to  favor  any 
step  towards  monarchy.  The  real  object  with  him,  was  to  prevent  its 
introduction." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  was  as  little  a  friend  to  monarchy  as  any 
gentleman.  He  concurred  in  the  opinion,  that  the  way  to  keep  out 
monarchical  government,  was  to  establish  such  a  Republican  government 
as  would  make  the  people  happy,  and  prevent  a  desire  of  change." 

"  Doctor  McClurg  was  not  so  much  afraid  of  the  shadow  of  monarchy, 
as  to  be  unwilling  to  approach  it ;  nor  so  wedded  to  Republican  govern- 
ment, as  not  to  be  sensible  of  the  tyrannies  that  had  been,  and  may  be, 
exercised  under  that  form."  * 

July  18th.  —  The  Resolution,  — "  That  the  National  Legis- 
lature be  empowered  to  appoint  inferior  tribunals,"  —  being 
taken  up,  — 

From  the  writings  of  General  Washington,  Mr.  Madison,  and  Mr.  Jefferson, 
Doctor  McClurg  appears  to  have  been  considered  as  possessing  talents  and 
attainments  of  the  highest  order. 


42 

''Mr.  Butler  could  sec  no  necessity  for  such  tribunals.  The  State 
tribunals  might  do  the  business." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin  concurred.  They  will  create  jealousies  and  oppositions 
in  the  State  tribunals,  with  the  jurisdiction  of  which  they  will  interfere." 

"Mr.  Gorham.  —  There  are  in  the  States  already  Federal  Courts,  with 
jurisdiction  for  trial  of  piracies,  etc.  No  complaints  have  been  made  by 
the  States,  or  the  Courts  of  the  States  Inferior  tribunals  are  essential  to 
render  the  authority  of  the  National  Legislature  effectual." 

"  Mr.  Randolph  observed,  that  the  Courts  of  the  States  cannot  be  trusted 
with  the  administration  of  the  National  laws." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur 'Morris  urged  also  the  necessity  of  such  a  provision." 

"Mr.  Sherman  was  willing  to  give  the  power  to  the  Legislature,  but 
wished  them  to  make  use  of  the  State  tribunals,  whenever  it  could  be 
done  with  safety  to  the  general  interest." 

On  the  question  "  for  empowering  the  National  Legislature 
to  appoint  inferior  tribunals,"  agreed  to,  nem.  con. 

"  Mr.  Madison  moved  '  that  the  constitutional  authority  of  the  States  ' 
shall  be  guaranteed  to  them,  respectively,  against  domestic  as  well  as 
foreign  violence." 

"  Doctor  McClurg  seconded  the  motion." 

"  Mr.  Houston  was  afraid  of  perpetuating  the  existing  Constitutions  of 
the  States.  That  of  Georgia  is  a  very  bad  one,  amd  [he]  hoped  [it]  would  be 
revised  and  amended.  It  may  also  be  difficult  for  the  General  Government 
to  decide  between  contending  parties,  each  of  which  claim  the  sanction  of 
the  Constitution." 

"Mr.  L.  Martin  was  for  leaving  the  States  to  suppress  rebellions  them- 
selves." 

"  Mr.  Gorham  thought  it  strange,  that  a  rebellion  should  be  known  to 
exist  in  the  Empire,  and  the  General  Government  should  be  restrained 
from  interposing  to  subdue  it.  .  .  .  With  regard  to  different  parties 
in  a  State,  as  long  as  they  confine  their  disputes  to  words,  they  will  be 
harmless  to  the  General  Government,  and  to  each  other.  If  they  appeal 
to  the  sword,  it  will  then  be  necessary  for  the  General  Government,  how- 
ever difficult  it  may  be  to  decide  on  the  merits  of  their  contest,  to  interpose, 
and  put  an  end  to  it." 

"  Mr.  Carroll.  — Some  such  provision  is  essential.  Every  State  ought 
to  wish  for  it." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  moved,  as  a  better  expression  of  the  idea,  that  a  repub- 
lican form  of  Government  shall  be  guaranteed  to  each  State  ;  and  that 
each  State  shall  be  protected  against  foreign  and  domestic  violence." 

On  the  question,  —  "  for  agreeing  to  Mr.  Wilson's  motion," 
—  it  passed,  nem.  con. 

July  19th.  —  "Mr.  L.  Martin  moved  [in  regard  to  the  tenure  of  the 
Executive  office]  to  reinstate  the  words,  —  'to  be  ineligible  a  second 
time.'" 

"Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris. — It  is  necessary  to  take  into  one  view  all 
that  relates  to  the  establishment  of  the  Executive.  .  .  Our  country  is 
an  extensive  one.  We  must  either,  then,  renounce  the  blessings  of  the 
Union,  or  provide  an  Executive  with  sufficient  vigor  to  pervade  every  part 
of  it.    .    ...   The  Executive,  therefore,  ought  to  be  so  constitute  J  as  to  be 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  43 

the  great  protector  of  the  mass  of  the  people.  It  is  the  duty  of  the  Execu- 
tive to  appoint  the  officers,  and  to  command  the  forces,  of  the  Republic  ; 
to  appoint,  first,  ministerial  officers  for  the  administration  of  public  affairs  ; 
secondly,  officers  for  the  dispensation  of  justice.  Who  will  be  the  best  judges 
whether  these  appointments  be  well  made?  The  people  at  large;  who 
will  know,  will  6ee,  will  feel,  the  effects  of  them.  Again,  who  can  judge 
so  well  of  the  discharge  of  military  duties,  for  the  protection  and  security 
of  the  people,  as  the  people  themselves,  who  are  to  be  protected  and 
secured  ?  .  .  .  If  he  is  to  be  the  guardian  of  the  people,  let  him  be 
appointed  by  the  people.  .  .  It  has  been  said,  that  the  candidates  for 
this  office  will  not  be  known  to  the  people.  If  they  be  known  to  the  Legis- 
lature, they  must  have  such  a  notoriety  and  eminence  of  character,  that 
they  cannot  possibly  be  unknown  to  the  people  at  large.  .  .  It  deserved 
consideration,  also,  that  such  an  ingredient  in  the  plan  would  render  it 
extremely  palatable  to  the  people.  These  were  the  general  ideas  which 
occurred  to  him  on  the  subject,  and  led  him  to  wish  and  move,  that  the 
whole  constitution  of  the  Executive  might  undergo  reconsideration." 

"  Mr.  Wilson.  —  .  .  He  perceived,  with  pleasure,  that  the  idea  was 
gaining  ground  of  an  election,  mediately  or  immediately,  by  the  people  " 
[rather  than  by  the  Legislature]. 

"  Mr.  Madison.  —  .  .  There  is  the  same,  perhaps  greater,  reason 
why  the  Executive  should  be  independent  of  the  Legislature,  than  why  the 
Judiciary  should.  A  coalition  of  the  two  former  powers  would  be_  more 
immediately  and  certainly  dangerous  to  public  liberty.  It  is  essential, 
then,  that  the  appointment  of  the  Executive  should  either  be  drawn  from 
some  source,  or  held  by  some  tenure,  that  will  give  him  a  free  agency  with 
regard  to  the  Legislature,  ^his  could  not  be,  if  he  was  to  be  appointable, 
from  time  to  time,  by  the  Legislature.  .  .  .  .  He  was  disposed,  for 
these  reasons,  to  refer  the  appointment  to  some  other  source.  The  people 
at  large  was,  in  his  opinion,  the  fittest  in  itself.  .  .  .  There  was  one 
difficulty,  however,  of  a  serious  nature,  attending  an  immediate  choice  by 
the  people.  The  right  of  suffrage  was  much  more  diffusive  in  the  Northern 
than  in  the  Southern  States  ;  and  the  latter  could  have  no  influence  in  the 
election  on  the  score  of  the  negroes.  The  substitution  of  Electors  obviated 
this  difficulty,  and  seemed,  on  the  whole,  liable  to  the  fewest  objections." 

"  Mr.  Gerry.  —  .  .  He  was  against  a  popular  election.  The  people 
are  uninformed,  and  would  be  misled  by  a  few  designing  men.  .  .  The 
popular  mode  of  electing  the  Chief  Magistrate  would  certainly  be  the 
worst  of  all." 

On  the  question,  on  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris's  motion,  — 
"  To  reconsider  generally  the  constitution  of  the  Executive," 
—  Aye,  unanimously. 

July  23c/.  —  "  Mr.  John  Langdon  and  Mr.  Nicholas  Gil- 
man,  from  New  Hampshire,  took  their  seats." 

The  Resolution,  —  "Referring  the  new  Constitution  to 
Assemblies,  to  be  chosen  by  the  people,  for  the  express 
purpose  of  ratifying  it,"  —  was  taken  into  consideration. 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth  moved,  that  it  be  referred  to  the  Legis- 
latures of  the  States  for  ratification." 

"  Mr.  Patterson  seconded  the  motion." 

"  Colonel  Mason  considered  a  reference  of  the  plan  to  the  authority  of 
the  people  as  one  of  the  most  important  and  essential  of  the  Resolutions. 
The  Legislatures  have  no  power  to  ratify  it.  They  are  the  mere  creatures 
of  the  State  Constitutions,  and  cannot  be  greater  than  their  creators." 


44  FACTS   TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,   AS   THEIR 

"  Mr.  Ram>olph.  —  One  idea  has  pervaded  all  our  proceedings  ;  to  wit, 
that  opposition,  as  well  from  the  States  as  from  individuals,  will  be  made 
to  the  system  proposed.  .  .  Whose  opposition  will  be  most  likely  to  be 
excited  against  the  system  ?  That  of  the  local  demagogues,  who  will 
be  degraded  by  it  from  the  importance  they  now  hold.  These  will  spare 
no  efforts  to  impede  that  progress  in  the  popular  mind  which  will  be 
necessary  to  the  adoption  of  the  plan,  and  which  every  member  will  find 
to  have  taken  place  in  his  own,  if  he  will  compare  his  present  opinions- 
with  those  he  brought  with  him  into  the  Convention.  It  is  of  great 
importance,  therefore,  that  the  consideration  of  this  subject  should  be 
transferred  from  the  Legislatures,  where  this  class  of  men  have  their  full 
influence,  to  a  field  in  which  their  efforts  can  be  less  mischievous." 

"  Mr.  Gerry. —  .  .  Great  confusion,  he  was  confident,  would  result 
from  a  recurrence  to  the  people.  They  would  never  agree  on  anything. 
He  could  not  see  any  ground  to  suppose  that  the  people  will  do  what  their 
rulers  will  not.  The  rulers  will  either  conform  to,  or  influence  the  sense 
of,  the  people. " 

"  Mr.  Gorham  was  against  referring  the  plan  to  the  Legislatures.  Men 
chosen  by  the  people  for  the  particular  purpose  will  discuss  the  subject 
more  candidly  than  members  of  the  Legislature,  who  are  to  lose  the  power 
which  is  to  be  given  up  to  the  General  Government.  .  .  In  the  States, 
many  of  the  ablest  men  are  excluded  from  the  Legislatures,  but  may  be 
elected  into  a  Convention.  Among  these  may  be  ranked  many  of  the 
clergy,  who  are  generally  friends  to  good  government.  Their  services 
were  found  to  be  valuable  in  the  formation  and  establishment  of  the 
Constitution  of  Massachusetts.  .  .  If  the  last  Article  of  the  Confed- 
eration is  to  be  pursued,  the  unanimous  concurrence  of  the  States  will  be 
necessary.  It  would,  therefore,  deserve  serious  consideration,  whether 
provision  ought  not  to  be  made  for  giving  effect  to  the  system  without 
waiting  for  the  unanimous  concurrence  of  the  States." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  If  the  Confederation  is  to  be  pursued,  no 
alteration  can  be  made  without  the  unanimous  consent  of  the  Legislatures. 
.  .  .  Whereas,  in  case  of  an  appeal  to  the  people  of  the  United  States, 
the  supreme  authority,  the  Federal  compact  may  be  altered  by  a  majority 
of  them,  in  like  manner  as  the  Constitution  of  a  particular  State  may  be 
altered  by  a  majority  of  the  people  of  the  State.  The  amendment 
moved  by  Mr.  Ellsworth  erroneously  supposes  that  we  are  proceeding  on 
the  basis  of  the  Confederation.  This  Convention  is  unknown  to  the 
Confederation." 

"  Mr.  King.  —  He  preferred  a  reference  to  the  authority  of  the  people, 
expressly  delegated  to  Conventions,  as  the  most  certain  means  of  obviating 
all  disputes  and  doubts  concerning  the  legitimacy  of  the  new  Constitution, 
as  well  as  the  most  likely  means  of  drawing  forth  the  best  men  in  the 
States  to  decide  on  it.  .  .  .  He  considered  it  as  of  some  consequence, 
also,  to  get  rid  of  the  scruples  which  some  members  of  the  State  Legis- 
latures might  derive  from  their  oaths  to  support  and  maintain  the  existing 
Constitutions." 

"  Mr.  Madison  thought  it  clear  that  the  Legislatures  were  incompetent 
to  the  proposed  changes.  These  changes  would  make  essential  inroads  on 
the  State  Constitutions.  .  .  He  considered  the  difference  between  a 
system  founded  on  the  [State]  Legislatures  only,  and  one  founded  on  the 
people,  to  be  the  true  difference  between  a  league  or  treaty,  and  a  Constitu- 
tion. The  former,  in  point  of  moral  obligation,  might  be  as  inviolable  as- 
the  latter.  In  point  of  political  operation,  there  were  two  important  dis- 
tinctions in  favor  of  the  latter.  .  Comparing  the  two  modes,  in  point, 
of  expediency,  he  thought  all  the  considerations  which  recommended  this- 
Convention,  in  preference  to  Congress,  for  proposing  the  reform,  were  in. 
favor  of  State  Conventions,  in  preference  to  the  Legislatures  for  examin- 
ing and  adopting  it." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  45 

On  the  question,  for  Mr.  Ellsworth's  motion  [seconded 
by  Mr.  Patterson],  "  to  refer  the  plan  to  the  Legislatures  of 
the  States,"  Aye,  three ;  No,  seven. 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  moved  [as  according  with  his 
ideas  concerning  the  extent  of  the  interests  involved],  that 
the  reference  of  the  plan  be  made  to  one  general  Conven- 
tion, chosen  and  authorized  by  the  people  to  consider,  amend, 
and  establish  the  same." 

On  the  question  for  agreeing  to  the  Resolution, —  .  .  . 
"To  refer  the  Constitution  ...  to  Assemblies  chosen  by  the 
people,"  —  Aye,  nine;  No,  one. 

"  Mr.  Gerry  moved,  that  the  proceedings  of  the  Convention  for  the 
establishment  of  a  National  Government  (except  the  parts  relating  to  the 
Executive)  be  referred  to  a  Committee  to  prepare  and  report  a  Constitu- 
tion conformable  thereto." 

"  General  Pinckney  reminded  the  Convention,  that,  if  the  Committee 
should  fail  to  insert  some  security  to  the  Southern  States  against  the 
emancipation  of  slaves,  and  taxes  on  exports,  he  should  be  bound  by  duty 
to  his  State  to  vote  against  their  Report.'' 

"  The  appointment  of  a  Committee,  as  moved  by  Mr.  Gerry,  was  agreed 
to,"  nem.  con. 

July  2Wi.  —  "On  a  ballot,  .  .  .  the  members  chosen 
were :  —  Mr.  Rutledge,  Mr.  Randolph,  Mr.  Gorham,  Mr. 
Ellsworth,  Mr.  Wilson." 

July  25th.  —  The  clause  "relating  to  the  Executive"  being 
again  under  consideration, — 

"  Mr.  Williamson.  — The  principal  objection  against  an  election  by  the 
people  seemed  to  be,  the  disadvantage  under  which  it  would  place  the 
smaller  States.  He  suggested,  as  a  cure  for  this  difficulty,  that  each  man 
should  vote  for  three  candidates ;  one  of  them,  he  observed,  would  be 
probably  of  his  own  State,  the  other  two  of  some  other  States ;  and  as 
probably  of  a  small  as  a  large  one." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  liked  the  idea  ;  Mr.  Madison  also  thought 
something  valuable  might  be  made  of  the  suggestion." 

"Mr.  Gerry. — A  popular  election  in  this  case  is  radically  vicious. 
The  ignorance  of  the  people  would  put  it  in  the  power  of  some  one  set  of 
men  dispersed  through  the  Union,  and  acting  in  concert,  to  delude  them 
into  any  appointment.  He  observed  that  such  a  society  of  men  existed  in 
the  Order  of  the  Cincinnati.  .  .  They  will,  in  fact,  elect  the  Chief 
Magistrate  in  every  instance,  if  the  election  be  referred  to  the  people. 
His  respect  for  the  characters  composing  this  Society  could  not  blind 
him  to  the  danger  and  impropriety  of  throwing  such  a  power  into  their 
hands." 

"  Mr.  John  Dickinson.  — He  had  long  leaned  towards  an  election  by  the 
people,  which  he  regarded  as  the  best  and  purest  source.  Objections,  he 
was  aware,  lay  against  this  mode,  but  not  so  great,  he  thought,  as  against 
the  other  modes.  The  greatest  difficulty,  in  the  opinion  of  the  House, 
seemed  to  arise  from  the  partiality  of  the  States  to  their  respective 
citizens." 

Ju-ij  2bth.  — "Colonel  Mason.  —  In  every  stage  of  the  question  relative 
to  tbo  Executive,  the  difficulty  of  the  subject,  and  the  diversity  of  opinions 


46  FACTS  TO  GUIDE  AMERICANS,    AS  THEIR 

concerning  it,  have  appeared.  ...  A  popular  election,  in  any  form, 
as  Mr.  Gerry  has  observed,  would  throw  the  appointment  into  the  hands 
of  the  Cincinnati ;  a  society,  for  the  members  of  which  he  had  a  great 
respect,  but  which  he  never  wished  to  have  a  preponderating  influence  in 

the  Government 

He  concluded  with  moving  that  the  constitution  of  the  Executive,  as 
reported  by  the  Committee  of  the  Whole,  be  reinstated  ;  namely,  '  that  the 
Executive  be  appointed  for  seven  years,  and  be  ineligble  a  second  time.'  M 

"  Mr.  Davie  seconded  the  motion." 

On  the  question,  Aye,  seven  ;  No,  three. 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  was  now  against  the  whole  paragraph." 

On  the  question  for  the  whole  Resolution,  as  amended, — 
"  That  a  National  Executive  be  instituted,  to  consist  of  a 
single  person,  to  be  chosen  by  the  National  Legislature,  for 
the  term  of  seven  years,  to  be  ineligble  a  second  time/'  — 
u  New  Hampshire,  Connecticut,  New  Jersey,  North  Carolina, 
South  Carolina,  Georgia,  Aye,  six ;  Pennsylvania,  Delaware, 
Maryland,  No,  three  ;  Massachusetts,  not  on  the  floor ;  Vir- 
ginia, divided,  —  Mr.  Blair  and  Colonel  Mason,  Aye ;  Gen- 
eral Washington  and  Mr.  Madison,  No.  Mr.  Randolph 
happened  to  be  out  of  the  house." 

"  Colonel  Mason  moved,  that  the  Committee  of  Detail  be  instructed  to 
receive  a  clause  requiring  certain  qualifications  of  landed  property,  and 
citizenship  of  the  United  States,  in  members  of  the  National  Legislature, 
and  disqualifying  persons  having  unsettled  accounts  with,  or  being  indebted 
to,  the  United  States,  from  being  members  of  the  National  Legislature." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  If  qualifications  are  proper,  he  would  pre- 
fer them  in  the  electors,  rather  than  the  elected.  As  to  debtors  of  the 
United  States,  they  are  few.  As  to  persons  having  unsettled  accounts, 
he  believed  them  to  be  pretty  many.  He  thought,  however,  such  a 
discrimination  to  be  both  odious  and  useless,  and,  in  many  instances, 
unjust  and  cruel.  The  delay  of  settlement  had  been  more  the  fault 
of  the  public,  than  of  the  individuals.  What  will  be  done  with  those 
patriotic  citizens  who  have  lent  money,  or  services,  or  property,  to  their 
country,  without  having  been  yet  able  to  obtain  a  liquidation  of  their 
claims  ?    Are  they  to  be  excluded  ?  " 

"  Mr.  Gorham  was  for  leaving  to  the  Legislature  the  providing  against 
such  abuses  as  had  been  mentioned." 

"  Mr.  Madison. —  .  .  It  might  be  well  to  limit  the  exclusion  to 
persons  who  had  received  money  from  the  public,  and  had  not  accounted 
for  it." 

"Mr.  Gerry  thought  the  inconvenience  of  excluding  a  few  worthy 
individuals,  .  .  ought  not  to  be  put  in  the  scale  against  the  public 
advantages  of  the  regulation,  and  that  the  motion  did  not  go  far  enough." 

"Mr.  Dickinson.  —  It  seemed  improper  that  any  man  of  merit  should 
be  subjected  to  disabilities  in  a  republic,  where  merit  was  understood  to 
form  the  great  title  to  public  trust,  honors,  and  rewards." 

"  Mr.  Gerry.  — If  property  be  one  object  of  government,  provisions  to 
secure  it  cannot  be  improper." 

"  Mr.  Wilson.  —  We  should  consider  that  we  are  providing  a  Constitu- 
tion for  future  generations,  and  not  merely  for  the  peculiar  circumstances 
of  the  moment.     The  time  has  been,  and  will  again  be,  when  the  public 

0 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  47 

safety  may  depend  on  the  voluntary  aids  of  individuals,  which  will  neces- 
sarily open  accounts  with  the  public ;  and  when  such  accounts  will  be 
a  characteristic  of  patriotism.  Besides,  a  partial  enumeration  of  cases 
will  disable  the  Legislature  from  disqualifying  odious  and  dangerous 
characters." 

"  Mr.  Langdon  was  for  striking  out  the  whole  clause,  for  the  reasons 
given  by  Mr.  Wilson.  So  many  exclusions,  he  thought,  too,  would  render 
the  system  unacceptable  to  the  people." 

"  Mr.  Gerry.  —  If  the  arguments  used  today  were  to  prevail,  we  might 
have  a  Legislature  composed  of  public  debtors,  pensioners,  placemen,  and 
contractors.  He  thought  the  proposed  disqualifications  would  be  pleasing 
to  the  people.  .  .  He  moved  to  add  *  pensioners  '  to  the  disqualified 
characters." 

On  the  question,  Aye,  three ;  No,  seven. 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  He  repeated,  that  it  had  not  been  so  much 
the  fault  of  individuals,  as  of  the  public,  that  transactions  between  them 
had  not  been  more  generally  liquidated  and  adjusted.  At  all  events, 
to  draw  from  our  short  and  scanty  experience,  rules  that  are  to  operate 
through  succeeding -ages,  does  not  savor  much  of  real  wisdom." 

On  the  question  for  striking  out,  as  moved  by  Mr.  Lang- 
don, Aye,  nine ;  No,  two. 

On  the  question  for  agreeing  to  the  clause  "  disqualifying 
public  debtors/'  Aye,  two  ;  No,  nine. 

It  has  been  shown  (p.  45),  that,  on  the  23d,  the  Convention 
voted  unanimously  to  appoint  a  Committee,  "  to  prepare  and 
report  a  Constitution,  conformable  to "  the  Resolutions 
which  they  had  adopted ;  that,  on  the  24th,  they  appointed 
that  Committee,  consisting  of  five  members;  and  that  they 
then  voted  to  discharge  the  Committee  of  the  Whole  from 
the  propositions  submitted  by  Mr.  C.  Pinckney,  on  the  29th 
of  May,  and  refer  them,  and  also  those  offered  by  Mr.  Pat- 
terson, on  the  15th  of  June,  "  to  the  Committee  of  Detail 
just  appointed."  On  the  26th,  they  voted  to  refer  likewise 
their  proceedings  since  the  23rd  to  the  same  Committee. 

The  Convention  adjourned,  soon  after, "  till  August  6th,  that 
the  Committee  might  have  time  to  prepare  and  report  the 
Constitution." 

Such  is  a  summary  view  of  the  manner  in  which  the 
Convention  were  occupied  six  weeks  in  considering  and 
acting  upon  the  Resolutions  of  Mr.  Randolph,  as  those 
Resolutions  had,  in  two  weeks,  been  amended  and  agreed 
to  in  Committee  of  the  Whole,  and  reported  to  the  House 
on  the  13th  of  June  (as  seen,  p.  18). 

Considering  the  striking  contrast  of  views  and  opinions 
which  were  so  repeatedly  and  threateningly  exhibited  ;  con 
sidering  also  that  the  question  of  slavery  was  yet  to  be  taken 
up,  for  the  first  time,  as  a  special  matter  to  be  disposed  of; 
and  considering,  moreover,  that  a  review  of  the  subjects 
already  under  debate,  together  with  the  consideration  of 
oUiers  afterward  introduced,  protracted  the  debates  through 


48  FACTS  TO  GUIDE  AMERICANS,  IN  1866,  '67,  '68,  ETC. 

an  additional  period  of  more  than  seven  weeks,  —  it  seems 
wonderful,  that  they  were  enabled  to  reach  any  practical 
issue  whatever ;  and  still  more  wonderful,  that  they  finally 
reached  an  issue,  so  productive  of  unparalleled  blessings,  not 
only  to  themselves  and  their  generation,  but  to  successive 
generations  after  them. 


At  this  stage  of  the  work,  it  is  deemed  appropriate  to 
append  to  what  has  been  presented  in  the  preceding  pages, 
the  following  testimony  of  Mr.  Madison  :  — 

il  "Whatever  may  be  the  judgment  pronounced  on  the  architects  of  the 
Constitution,  or  whatever  may  be  the  destiny  of  the  edifice  prepared  by 
them,  I  feel  it  a  duty  to  express  my  profound  and  solemn  conviction, 
derived  from  my  intimate  opportunity  of  observing  and  appreciating  the 
views  of  the  Convention,  collectively  and  individually,  that  there  never 
was  an  assembly  of  men,  charged  with  a  great  and  arduous  trust,  who 
were  more  pure  in  their  motives,  or  more  exclusively,  or  more  anxiously 
devoted  to  the  object  committed  to  them,  than  were  the  members  of  the 
Federal  Convention  of  1787,  to  the  object  of  devising  and  proposing  a 
constitutional  system,  which  should  best  supply  the  defects  of  that  which 
it  was  to  replace ,  and  best  secure  the  permanent  liberty  and  happiness 
of  their  country." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  *89.  49 

August  Qt7i.  —  Mr.  John  Francis  Mercer  took  his  seat  in 
that  body,  as  stated  in  the  note  to  the  preceding  p.  3. 

According  to  appointment  when  the  Convention  adjourned, 
the  Committee  of  Detail,  by  their  chairman,  Mr.  Rdtledge, 
delivered  in  their  Report ;  a  copy  of  which  was  furnished  to 
each  member. 

"  A  motion  was  made  to  adjourn,  in  order  to  give  leisure 
to  examine  the  Report." 

"  The  House  then  adjourned  till  tomorrow  at  eleven 
o'clock." 

In  compliance  with  their  instructions,  their  Report  was 
the  draft  of  a  Constitution,  and  from  that  time  during  the 
session  of  the  Convention,  their  debates  related  to  the 
provisions  it  contained,  or  to  such  others  as  were  proposed. 
Those  instructions,  and  the  several  documents  referred  to  them 
for  their  guidance  in  forming  it,  were  designated  in  p.  47, 

Of  the  proceedings  in  the  Convention  from  this  date  to  the 
14th,  the  portions  deemed  specially  adapted  to  the  original 
and  present  design  of  this  work,  were  given  in  the  preced- 
ing pp.  1  —  4 ;  to  which  the  reader  is  referred. 

August  litJi.  —  Section  1st  of  Article  VI.,  in  the  Report, 
viz.:  —  "The  members  of  each  House  shall  receive  a  com- 
pensation for  their  services,  to  be  ascertained  and  paid  by 
the  State  in  which  they  shall  be  chosen,"  being  taken  up, — 

11  Mr.  Ellsworth  said  that,  in  reflecting  on  the  subject,  he  had  been  sat- 
isfied that  too  much  dependence  would  be  produced  by  that  mode  of  pay- 
ment.    He  moved  to  strike  out  and  insert,  that  they  should  be  paid  out 

of  the  Treasury  of  the  United  States,  an  allowance  not  exceeding 

dollars  per  day."  * 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  moved  that  the  payment  be  out  of  the  Na- 
tional Treasury ;  leaving  the  quantum  to  the  National  Legislature. 
There  could  be  no  reason  to  fear  that  they  would  overpay  themselves." 

11  Mr.  Butler  contended  for  payment  by  the  States;  particularly  in  the 
case  of  the  Senate." 

"  Mr.  Langdon  was  against  payment  by  the  States." 

"  Mr.  Madtson.  —  If  the  House  of  Representatives  is  to  be  chosen  bi- 
ennially, and  the  Senate  to  be  constantly  dependent  on  the  Legislatures  [of 
the  States],  which  are  chosen  annually,  he  could  not  see  any  chance  for 
that  stability  in  the  General  Government,  the  want  of  which  was  a  prin- 
cipal evil  in  the  State  Governments.  His  fear  was,  that  the  organization 
of  the  Government,  supposing  the  Senate  to  be  really  independent  for  six 
years,  would  not  effect  our  purpose." 

"  Mr.  Broom  could  see  no  danger  in  trusting  the  General  Legislature 
with  the  payment  of  themselves.  The  State  Legislatures  had  this 
power,  and  no  complaint  had  been  made  of  it." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  .  .  thought  the  best  plan  would  be,  to  fix  a  moder- 
ate allowance  to  be  paid  out  ot  the  National  Treasury,  and  let  the  States 
make  such  additions  as  they  might  judge  lit." 

*  See  Mr.  Ellsworth's  former  expressions  on  the  subject,  pp.  24,  27, 


50  FACTS   TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

"  Mr.  Carroll  had  been  much  surprised  at  seeing  this  clause  in  the 
Report.  The  dependence  of  both  Houses  on  the  State  Legislatures  is  com- 
plete. .  .  .  The  new  Government  in  this  farm  was  nothing  more  than 
a  second  edition  of  Congress,  in  two  volumes  instead  of  one,  and,  perhaps, 
witu  very  few  amendments." 

"  Mr.  Dickinson  took  it  for  granted  that  all  were  convinced  of  the  ne- 
cessity of  making  the  General  Government  independent  of  the  pr  judices, 
passions,  and  improper  views,  of  the  State  Legislatures.     The  contrary  of 

this  was  off  cted  by  the  section  as  it  stands If  the  General 

Gov  rnment  should  be  left  dependent  on  the  State  Legislatures,  it  would 
be  happy  for  us  if  we  had  never  met  in  this  room." 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth  was  not  unwilling  himself  to  trust  the  Legislature 
with  authority  to  regulate  their  own  wages  ;  but  well  knew  that  an  un- 
limited discretion  for  that  purpose  would  produce  strong,  though  perhaps 
not  insuperable,  objections  [to  the  contemplated  Government]." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin. — As  the  Senate  is  to  represent  the  States,  the  mem- 
bers of  it  ought  to  be  paid  by  the  States." 

"  Mr.  Carroll.  —  The  Senate  was  to  represent  and  manage  the  affairs  of 
the  whole,  anl  not  to  be  the  advocates  of  Stace  interests.  Tney  ought, 
then,  not  to  be  dependent  on,  nor  paid  by,  the  States." 

"  Oq  the  question  for  paying  the  members  of  the  Legisla- 
ture out  of  the  National  Treasury, — Aye,  nine;  No,  two." 

"  It  was  moved  and  agreed  to  amend  the  section  by  adding, 
i  to  be  ascertained  by  law.'  " 

"  The  section,  as  amended,  was  then  agreed  to,  nem.  con." 

August  11th.  —  The  clause,  "to  subdue  a  rebellion  in  any 
State  on  the  application  of  its  Legislature,"  was  considered. 

"  Mr.  Pinckney  moved  to  strike  out,  '  on  the  application  of  its  Legis- 
lature.' " 

"Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  seconds." 

*'  Mr.  L.  Martin  opposed  it,  as  giving  a  dangerous  and  unnecessary 
power.  The  consent  of  the  State  ougnt  to  precede  the  introduction  of  any 
extraneous  force  whatever." 

"Mr.  Ellsworth  proposed  to  add  after  Legislature,  'or 
Executive.'" 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  The  General  Government  should  enforce 
obedience  in  all  cases  where  it  may  be  necessary." 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth,  —  .  .  .  He  was  willing  to  vary  his  motion  so  as  to 
read,  'or  without  it,'  when  the  Legislature  cannot  meet." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  was  against  letting  loose  the  myrmidons  of  the  United 
States  without  its  consent.  The  States  will  be  the  best  judges  in  such 
cases." 

"  Mr.  Langdon  was  for  striking  out,  as  moved  by  Mr.  Pinckney.  The 
apprehension  of  the  National  force  will  have  a  salutary  effect,  in  prevent- 
ing insurrections." 

"  Mr.  Randolph.  —  If  the  National  Legislature  is  to  judge  whether  the 
State  Legislatures  can  or  cannot  meet,  that  amendment  would  make  the 
clause  as  objectionable  as  the  motion  of  Mr.  Pinckney." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  We  are  acting  a  very  strange  part.  We 
first  form  a  strong  man  to  protect  us,  and  at  the  same  time  wish  to  tie  his 


ANCESTORS  WERE   GUIDED,  IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  51 

hands  behind  him.      The  Legislature  may  surely  be  trusted  with  such  a 
power  to  preserve  the  public  tranquillity." 

u  On  the  motion  to  add  l  or  without  it  [application]  when  the 
Legislature  cannot  meet/ — Aye,  five ;  No,  three." 

August  ISth.  —  "  Mr.  Rutledge  moved  to  refer  [to  the  Com- 
mittee of  Detail]  a  clause,  '  that  funds  appropriated  to  pub- 
lic creditors  should  not  be  diverted  to  other  purposes.' " 

*'  Mr.  Mason  was  much  attached  to  the  principle,  but  was  afraid  such 
a  feU  r  might  be  dangerous  in  time  of  war.  He  suggested  the  necessity 
of  preventing  the  danger  of  perpetual  revenue." 

"  Mr.  Rutledge's  motion  was  referred.  He  then  moved 
that  a  Grand  Committee  be  appointed  to  consider  the  neces- 
sit.3^  and  expediency  of  the  United  States  assuming  all  the 
State  debts.  .  .  .  The  assumption  would  be  just ;  as  the 
State  debts  were  contracted  in  the  common  defence.  .  .  . 
It  would  be  politic ;  as,  by  disburdening  the  people  of  the 
State  debts,  it  would  conciliate  them  to  the  plan." 

*'  Mr.  King  and  Mr.  Pinckney  seconded  the  motion." 

"  Mr.  King. —  .  .  Besides  the  considerations  of  justice  and  policy 
which  have  been  mentioned,  it  might  be  remarked  that  the  State  creditors, 
an  active  and  formidable  party,  would  otherwise  be  opposed  to  a  plan 
which  transferred  to  the  Union  the  best  resources,  .  .  .  witnout 
transferring  the  State  debts  at  tie  same  time.  .  .  .  He  would  not  say 
that  it  was  practicable  to  consolidate  the  debts,  but  he  thought  it  would 
be  prudent  to  have  the  subject  considered  by  a  Committee." 

"  Mr.  Rutledge's  motion,  *  that  a  Committee  be  appointed 
to  consider  of  the  assumption/  etc.,  was  agreed  to. — Aye,  six ; 
No j  four." 

"  Mr.  King  suggested  that  all  unlocated  lands  of  particu- 
lar States  ought  to  be  given  up." 

"  Mr.  Williamson  concurred  in  the  idea." 

"A  Grand  Committee  [according  to  Mr.  Rutledge's  mo- 
tion] was  then  appointed,  consisting  of  Mr.  Langdon,  Mr. 
King,  Mr.  Sherman,  Mr.  Livingston,  Mr.  Clymer,  Mr.  Dick- 
inson, Mu.  McIIenry,  Mr.  Mason,  Mr.  Williamson,  Mr. 
C.  C.  Pinckney,  and  Mr.  Baldwin." 

"  The  House  proceeded  to  the  clause,  'to  raise  armies.' " 

"  Mr.  Gorham  moved  to  add  '  and  support/  after  '  raise/ 
Agreed  to,  nem.  con." 

"Then  the  clause,  as  amended,  was  agreed  to,  nem.  con." 

11  Mr.  Gerry  took  notice  that  there  was  no  check  here  against  standing 
armies  in  time  of  peace.  .  .  .  The  people  were  jealous  on  this  head, 
and  great  opposition  to  the  plan  would  spring  from  such  an  omission.  . 
He  thought  an  army  dangerous  in  time  of  peace,  and  could  never  consent 
to  a  power  to  keep  up  an  indefinite  number.      He  proposed  that  there 

should  not  be  kept  up  in  time,  of  peace  more  than thousand  truops. 

His  idea  was,  that  the  blank  should  be  filled  with  two  or  three  thousand." 


52  FACTS  TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

"  A  clause,  '  to  make  rules  for  the  government  and  regula- 
tion of  the  land  and  naval  forces/  was  added  from  the  exist- 
ing  Articles  of  Confederation." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin,  and  Mr.  Gerry,  now  regularly  moved, '  provided  "that 

in  time  of  peace,  the  army  shall  not  consist  of  more  than thousand 

men.'  " 

"'  General  Pinckxey  asked,  whether  no  troops  were  ever  to  be  raised 
until  an  attack  should  be  made  onus?" 

"  Mr.  Gerry.  —  If  there  be  no  restriction,  a  few  States  may  establish  a 
military  Government." 

"  Mr.  Langdon  saw  no  room  for  Mr.  Gerry's  distrust  of  the  Repre- 
sentatives of  the  people." 

"Mr.  Dayton.  —  Preparations  for  war  are  generally  made  in  time  of 
peace  ;  and  a  standing  force  of  some  sort  may,  for  aught  we  know,  become 
unavoidable.  He  should  object  to  no  restriction  consistent  with  the^e 
ideas." 

"  The  motion  of  Mr.  Martin  and  Mr.  Gerry  was  disagreed 
to,  nem.  con.11 

"  Mr.  Mason  moved,  as  an  additional  power,  '  to  make  laws 
for  the  regulation  and  discipline  of  the  militia  of  the  several' 
States,  reserving  to  the  States  the  appointment  of  the 
officers/  " 

"  Mr.  Pinckney  mentioned  a  case  during  the  [Revolutionary]  war,  in 
which  a  dissimilarity  in  the  militia  of  different  States  had  produced  the 
most  serious  mischiefs.  Uniformity  was  essential.  The  States  will  never 
keep  up  a  proper  discipline  of  the  militia." 

11  Mr.  Mason  had  suggested  the  idea  of  a  select  mi!ith.  He  was  led  to 
think  that  would  be,  in  fact,  as  much  as  the  General  Government  co  sld 
advantageously  be  charged  with.  He  was  afraid  of  creating  insuperable 
objections  to  the  plan." 

"  General  Pinckney  renewed  Mr.  Mason's  original  motion.*  For  a 
part  to  be  under  the  General  Government,  and  a  part  under  the  State  Uov- 
ernments,  would  be  an  incurable  evil.  He  saw  no  room  for  such  distrust 
of  the  General  Government." 

"  Mr.  Langdon  seconds  General  Pinckney's  renewal.  He  saw  no  more 
reason  to  be  afraid  of  the  General  Government  than  of  the  State  Govern- 
ments, lie  was  more  apprehensive  of  the  confusion  of  the  different 
authorities  on  this  subject,  than  of  either." 

"Mr.  Madison  thought  the  regulation  of  the  militia  naturally  apper- 
taining to  the  authority  charged  with  the  public  defence.  It  did  not 
seem,  in  its  nature,  to  be  divisible  between  two  distinct  authorities.  .  . 
Those  who  had  a  full  view  of  the  public  situation,  would,  from  a  sense 
of  the  danger,  guard  against  it.  The  States  would  not  be  separately 
impressed  with  the  general  situation,  nor  have  the  due  confidence  in  ihe 
concurrent  exertions  of  each  other." 

"  Mr.  Pinckney  thought  the  power  such  an  one  as  could  not  be  abused, 
and  that  the  States  would  see  the  necessity  of  surrendering  it.  He  had, 
however,  but  a  scanty  faith  in  militia.  There  must  be  also  a  real  military 
force.     This  alone  can  effectually  an;-wer  the  purpose.     The  United  States 

i 
*  Mr.  Mason's  original  motion  was,  to  refer  to  the  Committee,  "a  power  to  regulato 
the  militia."  * 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  53 

has  been  making  an  experiment  without  it,  and  we  see  the  consequence 
in  their  rapid  approaches  toward  anarchy."        • 

"  Mr.  Gerry  thought  this  the  last  point  remaining  to  be  surrendered. 
If  it  be  agreed  to  by  the  Convention,  the  plan  will  have  as  black  a  mark 
as  was  set  on  Cain.  He  had  no  such  confidence  in  the  General  Govern- 
ment as  some  gentlemen  possessed,  and  believed  it  would  be  found  the 
States  have  not." 

"  Mr.  Read  doubted  the  propriety  of  leaving  the  appointment  of  the 
militia  officers  to  the  States." 

"  On  the  question  for  committing  to  the  Grand  Committee, 
last  appointed,  the  latter  motion  of  Colonel  Mason,  and  the 
original  one  revived  by  General  Pinckney.  Aye,  eight ;  No, 
two.     Maryland,  divided." 

August  20th.  — Mr.  Pinckney  submitted  to  the  House,  in  order  to  be 
referred  to  the  Committee  of  Detail,  a  number  of  propositions,  two  of 
which  were  the  following : — 

*  The  United  States  shall  be  forever  considered  as  one  body 
corporate  and  politic  in  law,  and  entitled  to  all  the  rights, 
privileges  and  immunities  which  to  bodies  corporate  do  or 
ought  to  appertain." 

"  The  jurisdiction  of  the  Supreme  Court  shall  be  extended 
to  all  controversies  between  the  United  States  and  an  indi- 
vidual State ;  or,  the  United  States  and  the  citizens  of  an  in- 
dividual State." 

"  These  propositions  were  referred  to  the  Committee  of  De- 
tail, without  debate  or  consideration  of  them  by  the  House." 

"  Colonel  Mason  moved  to  enable  Congress  <  to  enact 
sumptuary  laws.'  No  Government  can  be  maintained,  unless 
the  manners  be  made  consonant  to  it.  Such  a  discretion- 
ary power  may  do  good,  and  can  do  no  harm." 

On  this  motion,  as  to  "  sumptuary  laws,"  Aye,  three  ;  No, 
eight. 

u  The  clause,  '  to  make  all  laws  necessary  and  proper  for 
carrying  into  execution  the  foregoing  powers,  and  all  other 
powers  vested  by  this  Constitution  in  the  Government  of 
the  United  States,  or  any  department  or  officer  thereof,' — 
was  agreed  to,  nem.  con." 

"  The  Section  concerning  treason,  was  then  taken  up." 

"  Doctor  Johnson. —  .  .  He  contended  that  treason  could  not  be 
both  against  the  United  States,  and  individual  States  ;  being  an  offence 
against  the  sovereignty,  which  can  be  but  one  in  the  same  community.', 

11  Mr.  Ellsworth.  —  There  can  be  no  danger  to  the  general  authority,  as 
the  laws  of  the  United  States  are  to  be  paramount." 

"  Doctor  Johnson  was  still  of  opinion  there  could  be  no  treason  against 
a  particular  State.  It  could  not,  even  at  present,  as  the  Confederation 
now  stands,  the  sovereignty  being  in  the  Union  ;  much  less  can  it  be  under 
the  proposed  system." 


54  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

"  Colonel  Mason.  —  .  .  The  individual  States  will  retain  a  part  of 
the  sovereignty.  An  acfcmay  be  treason  against  a  particular  State,  which 
is  not  so  against  the  United  States.  He  cited  the  rebellion  of  Bacon,  in 
Virginia,  as  an  illustration  of  the  doctrine." 

"  Doctor  Johnson. — That  case  would  amount  to  treason  against  the 
sovereign,  the  supreme  sovereign,  the  United  States." 

"  Mr  Kixg.  —  No  line  can  be  drawn  between  levying  war  and  adhering 
to  the  enemy  against  the  United  States,  and  against  an  individual  State. 
Treason  against  the  latter  must  be  so  against  the  former." 

"  Mr.  Sherman.  —  Resistance  against  the  laws  of  the  United  States,  as 
distinguished  from  resistance  against  the  laws  of  a  particular  State,  forms 
the  lino." 

{*  Mr.  Ellsworth.  — The  United  States  are.sovereign  on  one  side  of  the 
line  —  the  States  on  the  other." 

"Mr.  Dickinson.  —  War  or  insurrection  against  a  member  of  the 
Union,  must  be  so  against  the  whole  body." 

After  several  amendments,  the  "  section  was  agreed  to, 
nem.  con" 

August  2lst.  —  The  clause, — "No  tax  or  duty  shall  be  laid 
by  the  Legislature  on  articles  exported  from  any  State,"  — 
was  taken  up. 

"  Mr.  Langdon.  —  By  this  section  the  States  are  left  at  liberty  to  tax 
exports.  New  Hampshire,  therefore,  with  other  non-exporting  States,  will 
be  subject  to  be  taxed  by  the  States  exporting  its  produce." 

"Mr.  Ellsworth. —  .  .  .  The  power  of  regulating  trade  between 
the  States  will  protect  them  against  each  other." 

"  Mr.  Williamson.  —  ....  He  would  never  agree  to  this  powei*. 
Should  it  take  place,  it  would  destroy  the  last  hope  of  the  adoption  of  the 
plan." 

"Mr.  Gouverneur  Morrts.  —  These  local  considerations  ought  not  to 
impede  the  general  interest.  There  is  great  weight  in  the  argument,  that 
the  exporting  States  will  tax  the  produce  of  their  uncommercial  neigh- 
bors. The  power  of  regulating  the  trade  between  Pennsylvania  and  New 
Jersey,  will  never  prevent  the  former  from  taxing  the  latter.  [But]  if 
no  tax  can  be  laid  on  exports,  an  embargo  cannot  be  laid  ;  though,  in 
time  of  war,  such  a  measure  may  be  of  critical  importance.  Tobacco, 
iuinb  r,  and  live-stock,  are  three  objects  belonging  to  different  States, 
of  which  great  advantage  might  be  made  by  a  [general]  power  to  t  ix 
exports.  To  these  may  be  added  ginseng,  and  masts  for  ships,  by  which  a 
tax  might  be  thrown  on  other  nations.  .  .  The  state  of  the  country,  also, 
will  change,  and  render  duties  on  exports,  as  skins,  beaver,  and  other 
peculiar  raw  materials,  politic  in  the  view  of  encouraging  American  manu- 
factures. ' ' 

"  Mr.  Butler  was  strenuously  opposed  to  a  power  over  exports,  as 
unjust,  and  alarming  to  the  Staple  States  [meaning  the  Southern  States]." 

"Mr.  Dickinson. — The  power  of  taxing  exports  may  be  inconvenient 
at  present ;  but  it  must  be  of  dangerous  consequence  to  prohibit  it,  with 
respect  to  all  articles  and  forever." 

"Mr.  Sherman.  —  It  is  best  to  prohibit  the  National  Legislature  in  all 
cases.     The  States  will  never  give  up  all  power  over  trade." 

"Mr.  Madison.  —  As  we  ought  to  be  governed  by  National  and 
permanent  views,  it  is  a  sufficient  argument  for  giving  the  power  over 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  55 

exports,  that  a  tax,  though  it  may  not  be  expedient  at  present,  may  be  so 
hereafter.  A  proper  regulation  of  exports  may,  and  probably  will,  be 
necessary  hereafter,  and  for  the  same  purposes  as  the  regulation  of  imports  ; 
viz.,  for  revenue,  domestic  manufactures,  and  procuring  equitable  regula- 
tions from  other  nations." 

"  Mr.  WrLsoN.  — Pennsylvania  exports  the  produce  of  Maryland,  New 
Jersey,  Delaware,  and  will,  by  and  by,  wnen  the  River  Delaware  is  opened, 
export  for  New  York,  in  favoring . the  general  power  over  exports,  there- 
fore, he  opposed  the  particular  interest  of  his  State.  .  .  To  deny  this 
power,  is  to  take  from  the  common  Government  half  the  regulation  of 
trade.  It  was  his  opinionthat  a  power  over  exports  might  be  more  effectual, 
than  that  over  imports,  in  obtaining  beneficial  treaties  of  commerce." 

M  Mr.  Gerry  was  strenuously  opposed  to  the  power  over  exports.  It 
might  be  made  use  of  to  compel  the  States  to  comply  with  the  will  of  the 
General  Government,  and  to  grant  it  any  new  power  which  might  be 
demanded.  We  have  given  it  more  power  already  than  we  know  how  will 
be  exercised.  It  will  enable  the  General  Government  to  oppress  the  States, 
as  much  as  Ireland  is  oppressed  by  Great  Britain." 

"  Mr.  Fitzsimons  would  be  against  a  tax  on  exports  to  be  laid  immedi- 
ately ;  but  was  for  giving  a  power  of  laying  a  tax  when  a  proper  time 
may  call  for  it.  This  would  certainly  be  the  case  when  America  should 
become  a  manufacturing  country." 

•«  Colonel  Mason.  —  If  he  were  for  reducing  the  States  to  mere  corpora- 
tions, as  seemed  to  be  the  tendency  of  some  arguments,  he  should  be  for 
subjecting  their  exports,  as  well  as  imports,  to  a  power  of  general  taxation. 
.  .  The  eight  Northern  States  have  an  interest  different  from  the  five 
Southern  States  ;  and  have,  inoue  branch  of  the  Legislature,  thirty-six  votes 
against  twenty-nine ;  and  in  the  other,  in  the  prop  >rtion  of  eight  against  five. 
The  Southern  States  had,  therefore,  ground  for  their  suspicion.  The  case  of 
exports  was  not  the  same  with  that  of  imports.  The  latter  were  the  same 
throughout  the  States  ;  the  former,  very  different." 

"  Mr.  Clymer  remarked  that  every  State  might  reason  with  regard  to 
its  particular  productions  in  the  same  manner  as  the  Southern  States.  The 
Middle  States  may  apprehend  an  oppression  of  their  wheat,  flour,  provisions, 
etc. ;  and  with  more  reason,  as  these  articles  were  exposed  to  a  competition 
in  foreign  markets,  not  incident  to  tobacco,  rice,  etc." 

"  Mr  Madison,  in  order  to  require  two-thirds  of  each  House  to  tax 
exports,  as  a  lesser  evil  than  a  total  prohibition,  moved  to  insert  the  words, 
*  unless  by  consent  of  two-thirds  of  the  Legislature.'  " 

"  Mr.  Wilson  seconds ;  and  on  this  question,  it  passed  in 
the  negative, — Aye,  five;  No,  six;  Virginia,  Colonel 
Mason,  Mr.  Randolph,  Mr.  Blair,  No  ;  General  Washington, 
Mr.  Madison,  Aye.11 

August  23d.  —  "  The  following  clause  in  the  Report  of  the 
Committee  of  eleven,  being  taken  up,  — ■ '  To  make  laws  for 
organizing,  arming  and  disciplining  the  militia,  and  for  gov- 
erning such  parts  of  them  as  may  be  employed  in  the  service 
of  the  United  States ;  reserving  to  the  States,  respectively, 
the  appointment  of  the  officers,  and  authority  of  training  the 
militia  according  to  the  discipline  prescribed.7  " 

11  Mr.  Sherman  moved  to  strike  out  the  last  member,  *  and  authority  of 
training,  etc'  " 


56 


"Mr.  King,  by  way  of  explanation,  faid  that,  by  organizing,  the  Com- 
mitter meant  proportioning  the  officers  and  men, — by  arming,  specifying 
the  kind,  size,  and  calibre  of  arms, — and,  by  disciplining,  prescribing  the 
manual  exercise,  evolutions,  etc." 

"Mr.  Gfrry. — This  power  in  the  United  States,  as  explained,  is 
making  the  States  drill-sergeants.  He  had  as  lief  let  the  citizens  of  Massa- 
chusetts be  disarmed,  as  to  take  the  command  from  the  State,  and  subject 
them  to  the  General  Legislature.  It  would  be  regarded  as  a  system  of 
despotism.." 

"  Mr.  King  added  to  his  former  explanation,  that  arming  .  .  included 
the  authority  to  regulate  the  modes  of  furnishing,  either  by  the  militia 
themselves,  the  State  Government,  or  the  National  Treasury  ;  that  laws  for 
disciplining  must  involve  penalties,  and  everything  necessary  for  enforcing 
penalties." 

"  Mr.  Dayton  moved  to  postpone  the  paragraph. " 

"  On  the  motion  to  postpone,  —  Aye,  three  ;  No,  eight." 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth  and  Mr.  Sherman  moved  to  postpone  the  second 
clause." 

••  Mr.  Langdon  said  he  could  not  understand  the  jealousy  expre^se  1  by 
some  gentlemen.  The  General  and  State  Governments  were  not  enemies 
to  each  other,  but  different  institutions  for  the  good  of  the  peoplo  of 
America.  As  one  of  the  people  he  could  say,  the  National  Gove.nment  is 
mine,  the  State  Government  is  mine.  In  transferring  power  fom  one  to 
the  other,  I  only  take  out  of  my  left  hand  what  it  cannot  so  well  use,  and 
put  it  into  my  right  hand,  where  it  can  be  better  used." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  thought  it  was  rather  taking  out  of  the  right  hand,  and 
putting  it  into  the  left.  Will  any  man  say  that  liberty  will  be  as  safo  in 
the  hands  of  eighty  or  an  hundred  men  taken  from  the  whole  Continent, 
as  in  the  hands  of  two  or  three  hundred  from  a  single  State  ?  " 

"  General  Pinckney  preferred  the  clause  reported  by  the  Committee, 
extending  the  meaning  of  it  to  the  case  of  fines,  etc." 

"Mr.  Madison.  —  The  primary  object  is,  to  secure  an  effectual  disci- 
pline of  the  militia.  This  will  no  more  be  done,  if  left  to  the  States  sepa- 
rately, than  the  requisitions  have  been  hitherto  paid  by  them  T  e 
States  neglect  their  militia  now,  .  .  in  like  manner  as  the  militia  of  a 
State  would  have  been  still  more  neglected  than  it  has  been,  if  each  county 
had  been  independently  charged  witn  the  care  of  its  militia.  The  disci- 
pline of  the  militia  is  evidently  a  national  concern,  and  ought  to  be  provided 
for  in  the  national  Constitution." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin  was  confident  that  the  States  would  never  give  up  the 
power  over  the  militia." 

"  Mr  Randolph  asked  what  dinger  there  could  be,  that  the  militia 
would  be  brought  into  the  field,  and  made  to  commit  suicide  on  themselves. 
This  is  a  power  that  cannot,  from  its  nature,  be  abused  ;  unless,  indeed, 
the  whole  mass  should  be  corrupted.     .     .     He  urged  tins  as  an  essential 

Eoint :  observing  that  the  militia  were  everywhere  neglected  by  the  State 
legislatures,  the  members  of  which  courted  popularity  too  much  to  enforce 
a  proper  discipline." 

"On  the  question  on  the  motion  of  Mr.  Ellsworth  and 
Mr.  Sherman,  —  Aye,  one  ;  No,  ten." 

u  On  the  question  to  agree  to  the  first  part  of  the  clause, 
< — l  To  make  laws  for  organizing,  arming  and  disciplining  the 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  *88,  *89.  57 

militia,  and  for  governing  such  part  of  them  as  may  be 
employed  in  the  service  of  the  United  States/  — Aye,  nine  ; 
No,  two." 

"  Mr.  Madison  moved  to  amend  the  next  part  of  the  clause 
so  as  to  read,  'reserving  to  the  States,  respectively,  the 
appointment  of  the  officers,  under  the  rank  of  general  officers.''  " 

*'*  Mr.  Sherman  considered  this  as  absolutely  inadmissible." 

"  Mr.  Gerry.  —  Let  us  at  once  destroy  the  State  Governments,  have  an. 
Executive  for  life  or  hereditary,  and  a  proper  Senate ;  and  then  there 
would  be  some  consistency  in  giving  full  power  to  the  General  Govern- 
rn<  nr.  .  .  He  warned  the  Convention  against  pushing  the  experiment 
too  far.  Some  people  will  support  a  plan  of  vigorous  government,  at  every 
risk.  Others,  of  a  more  democratic  cast,  will  oppose  it  with  equal 
determination  ;  and  a  civil  war  may  be  produced  by  the  conflict." 

"  Mr.  Madison. — As  the  greatest  danger  is  that  of  disunion  of  the 
States,  it  is  necessary  to  guard  against  it  by  sufficient  powers  to  the  common 
Gov  rnment ;  and  as  the  greatest  danger  to  liberty  is  from  large  standing 
armies,  it  is  best  to  prevent  them  by  an  effectual  provision  for  a  good 
militia." 

"  On  the  question  to  agree  to  Mr.  Madison's  motion,  —  Aye, 
three ;  No,  eight.7' 

"  On  the  clause,  'and  the  authority  of  training  the  militia 
according  to  the  discipline  prescribed  by  the  United  States/ 
—  Aye,  seven  ;  No,  four." 

"  Mr.  Rutledge  moved  to  amend  Article  VIII.  [in  the 
Report  of  August  6tb,  p.  49],  to  read  as  follows:  —  'This 
Constitution,  and  the  laws  of  the  United  States  made  in 
pursuance  thereof,  and  all  the  treaties  made  under  the 
authority  of  the  United  States,  shall  be  the.  supreme  law 
of  the  several  States  and  of  their  citizens  and  inhabitants ; 
and  the  Judges  of  the  several  States  shall  be  bound  thereby  in 
their  decisions,  anything  in  the  Constitution  or  laws  of  the 
several  States  to  the  contrary,  notwithstanding/  —  which  was 
agreed,  to  nem.  con." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  moved  to  alter  the  first  part 
of  the  clause  [concerning  the  militia],  so  as  to  read,  '  to 
provide  for  calling  forth  the  militia,  to  execute  the  laws 
of  tiie  Union,  suppress  insurrections,  and  repel  invasions ;  — 
which  was  agreed  to,  nem.  con." 

"  Mr.  Charles  Pinckney  moved",  as  an  additional  power  to 
be  vested  in  the  Legislature  of  the  United  States,  '  to  nega- 
tive all  laws  passed  by  the  several  States  interfering,  in  the 
opinion  of  the  Legislature,  with  the  general  interests  and 
harmony  of  the  Union  ;  provided  that  two-thirds  of  the  mem- 
bers of  each  House  assent  to  the  same.'  This  principle,  he 
observed,  had  formerly  been  agreed  to.  He  considered  the 
precaution  as  essentially  necessary." 


58  ^ACTS  TO   GtJIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

"  Mr.  Broom  seconded  the  proposition." 

"  Mr.  Madison  proposed  that  it  should  be  committed.  He  had  been 
from  the  beginning  a  friend  to  the  principle  ;  but  thought  the  modification 
might  be  made  better." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  considered  this  as  the  key-stone  wanted  to  complete  the 
wide  arch  of  government  we  are  raising.  The  power  of  self-defence  had 
been  urged  as  necessary  for  the  State  Governments.  It  was  equally  neces- 
sary for  the  General  Government.  Tne  firmness  of  Judges  is  not  of  itself 
sufficient.  Something  further  is  requisite.  It  will  be  better  to  prevent 
the  passage  of  an  improper  law,  than  to  declare  it  void  when  passed." 

"  Mr.  Ellsworth  observed,  that  the  power  contended  for  would  require 
that  all  laws  of  theSiate  Legislatures  should  .  .  be  transmitted  to  the 
General  Legislature,  or  that  the  State  Executives  should  be  appointed  by 
the  General  Government,  and  have  a  control  over  the  State  laws. 

"  Mr.  Pincknky  declared,  that  the  State  Executives  ought  to  be  so 
appointed,  with  euch  control  ;  and  that  it  would  be  so  provided,  if  another 
Convention  should  take  place." 

"  Mr.  Langdon  was  in  favor  of  the  proposition.  He  considered  it  as 
resolvable  into  the  question,  whether  the  extent  of  the  National  Consti- 
tution was  to  be  judged  of  by  the  General  or  State  Governments  ?"  * 

"  On  the  question  for  commitment,  —  Aye,  five  ;  No,  six." 

August  25th.  —  "  Mr.  McHenry  and  General  Pinckney 
made  the  following  proposition  :  — '  All  duties,  imposts  and 
excises,  prohibitions  or  restraints,  laid  or  made  by  the  Legis- 
lature of  the  United  States,  shall  be  uniform  and  equal 
throughout  the  United  States.'  " 

"  Referred  [with  other  propositions],  nem.  con.,  to  a  Com- 
mittee composed  of  a  member  from  each  State." 

August  28th.  —  The  clause,  —  "  No  State,  "without  the 
consent  of  the  Legislature  of  the  United  States,  shall  lay- 
impost  or  duties  on  imports,"  —  being  under  consideration,  — 

"  Mr.  Ktng  moved  to  add,  '  a  prohibition  on  the  States  to 
interfere  in  private  contracts.' " 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  This  would  be  going  too  far." 
"  Mr.  Wilson  was  in  favor  of  Mr.  King's  motion. " 

M  Mr.  Madison  admitted  that  inconveniences  might  arise  from  such  a 
prohibition  ;  but  thought  on  the  wiiole  it  would  he  overbalanced  by  the 
utility  of  it.  He  conceived,  however,  that  a  negative  on  the  State  laws 
could  alone  Becure  the  effect."  * 

"  Colonel  Mason  observed,  that  particular  States  might  wish  to 
encourage,  by  impost  duties,  certain  manufactures,  for  which  they  enjoyed 
natural  advantages  ;  as  Virginia,  the  manufacture  of  hemp,  etc." 

**  Mr.  Madison. — The  encouragement  of  manufactures  in  that  mode 
requires  duties,  not  only  on  imports  directly  from  foreign  countries,  but 
from  the  other  States  in  the  Union  ;  which  would  revive  all  the  mischiefs 
experienced  from  the  want  of  a  General  Government  over  commerce." 

*  Relative  to  the  proposition  for  such  a  power,  and  the  debates  upon  it,  see  pp.  16, 40. 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  59 

"  Mr.  King  moved  to  insert,  after  the  word  '  imports,'  the  words, 
'or  exports  ;'  so  as  to  prohibit  the  States  from  taxing  either." 

"  On  the  question,  —  Aye,  six  ;  No,  five." 

August  30th.  — The  Article,  — "  The  United  States  shall 
guaranty  to  each  State  a  republican  form  of  government ; 
and  shall  protect  each  State  against  invasions  ;  and,  on  the 
application  of  its  Legislature,  against  domestic  violence,"  — 
being  taken  under  consideration,  — 

"  Mr.  Dickinson  moved  to  strike  out,  '  on  the  application  of  its  Legis- 
lature.' He  thought  it  of  essential  importance  to  the  tranquillity  of  the 
United  States,  that  they  should,  in  all  cases,  suppress  domestic  violence, 
which  may  proceed  from  the  State  Legislature  itself,  or  from  disputes 
between  the  two  branches,  where  such  may  exist." 

u  On  the  question, — Aye,  three  ;  No,  eight." 

"Mr.  Dickinson  moved  to  insert  the  words,  '  or  Executive,'  after  the 
words,  ■  application  of  its  -Legislature.'  The  occasion  itself,  he  remarked, 
might  hinder  the  Legislature  from  meeting." 

"On  this  question,  —  Aye,  eight;  No,  two;  Maryland, 
divided." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin  moved  to  subjoin  to  the  last  amendment, 
the  words,  *  in  the  recess  of  the  Legislature,'  —  on  which 
question,  Maryland  only,  Aye" 

"  On  the  last  clause  as  amended,  —  Aye,  nine  ;  No,  two." 

The  Article,  —  "  The  ratification  of  the  Conventions  of 

States  shall  be  sufficient  for  organizing  this  Constitution." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  observed  that  the  States  being  now  confederated  by 
Articles  which  require  unanimity  in  changes,  he  thought  the  ratification, 
in  this  case,  of  ten  States  at  least  ought  to  be  made  necessary." 

"  Mr.  Randolph  was  for  filling  the  blank  with  '  nine,'  that  being  a 
respectable  majority  of  the  whole,  and  being  a  number  made  familiar  by 
the  constitution  of  the  existing  Congress." 

"Mr.  Dickinson  asked,  whether  the  concurrence  of  Congress  is  to  be 
essential  to  the  establishment  of  the  system — whether  the  ret  using  States 
in  the  Confederacy  could  be  deserted — and  whether  Congress  could  concur 
in  contravening  the  system  under  which  they  acted?  " 

44  Mr.  Wilson.  —  As  the  Constitution  stands,  the  States  only  which 
ratify  can  be  bound.  We  must,  he  said,  in  this  case,  go  to  the  original 
powers  of  society.  The  house  on  fire  must  be  extinguished,  without  a 
scrupulous  regard  to  ordinary  rights." 

44  Mr.  Butler  was  in  favor  of  •  nine.'  He  revolted  at  the  idea  that 
one  or  two  States  should  restrain  the  rest  from  consulting  their  safety." 

11  Mr.  King  thought  the  amendment  necessary ;  otherwise,  as  the  Consti- 
tution now  stands,  it  will  operate  on  the  whole,  though  ratified  by  a  part 
only." 

August  3lst.  —  "Mr.  King  moved  to  add  to  the  end  of 
the  Article,  the  words,  '  between  the  said  States/  so  as 
to  confine  the  operation  of  the  Government  to  the  States 
ratifying  it." 


60  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS   THEIR 

"  On  the  question,  — Aye,  nine  ;  No,  one." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  doubted  the  propriety  of  authorizing  less  than  all  the 
States  to  execute  the  Constitution,  considering  the  nature  of  the  existing 
Confederation." 

"  Mr.  Carroll  mentioned  the  mode  of  altering  the  Constitution  of 
Maryland  pointed  out  therein,  and  that  no  other  mode  could  be  pursued 
in  tha:  State." 

'•Mr.  King. —  .  .  Conventions  alone,  which  will  avoid  all  tho 
obstacles  from  the  complicated  formation  of  the  Legislatures,  will  succeed ; 
and,  if  not  positively  required  by  the  plan,  its  enemies  will  oppose  that 
mode." 

"  Mr.  Madison  considered  it  best  to  require  Conventions.  .  .  The 
difficulty  in  Maryland  w<is  no  greater  than  in  other  Stages,  where  no  mode 
of  change  was  pointed  out  by  their  Constitution,  and  all  officers  were  under 
oath  to  support  it.  The  people  were,  in  fact,  the  fountain  of  all  power, 
and  by  recurring  to  them,  all  difficulties  were  got  over  They  could  alter 
constitutions  as  they  pleased.  It  was  a  principle  in  the  Bills  of  Rights, 
that  first  principles  might  be  resorted  to." 

11  Mr.  Gorham  urged  the  expediency  of  Conventions ;  also  Mr. 
Pinckney,  for  reasons  formerly  urged  on  a  discussion  of  this  question." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin  insisted  on  a  reference  to  the  State  Legislatures.  He 
urged  the  danger  of  commotions  from  a  resort  to  the  people  and  to  first 
principles  ;  in  which  the  Government  might  be  on  one  side,  and  the  people 
on  the  other." 

After  the  successive  motions,  to  fill  the  blank  with  thirteen,  ten,  etc., 
had  bem  negatived,  k<  Colonel  Mason  [remarked  that]  nine  Sates  had 
been  required  in  all  great  cases  under  the  Confederation,  and  that  number 
was  on  that  account,  preferable." 

On  the  question  for   "  nine/'  —  Aye,  eight ;  No,  three. 

The  Article,  as  amended,  was  then  agreed  to  by  all  the 
States,  Maryland  excepted  "  [though  Mr.  Jenifer,  one  of  its 
delegates,  voted  Aye}" 

"On  the  question  on  the  clause  of  the  Report,  —  'and  all 
duties,  imposts,  and  excises,  laid  by  the  Legislature,  shall  be 
uniform  throughout  the  United  States,'  —  it  was  agreed  to, 
nem.  con." 

The  Article,  as  amended  on  motion  of  Mr.  Gouverneur 
Morris  and  Mr.  Pinckney,  was  then  taken  up  ;  viz. :  —  "  This 
Constitution  shall  belaid  before  the  United  States  in  Congress 
assembled  ;  and  it  is  the  opinion  of  this  Convention  that  it 
should  afterwards  be  submitted  to  a  Convention  chosen  in 
each  State,  in  order  to  receive  the  ratification  of  such 
Conventions,  to  which  end  the  several  Legislatures  ought  to 
provide  for  the  calling  of  Conventions  within  their  respective 
States,  as  speedily  as  circumstances  will  permit." 

"  Mr  Gouverneur  Morris  said  his  object  w.ih,  to  impress  in  stronger 
terms  the  necessity  of  calling  Conventions  in  order  to  p- event  enemies  to 
the  plan  from  giving  it  the  goby.  When  it  first  appears,  with  the  sanction 
of  this  Convention,  the  people  will  be  favorable  to  it.     By  degrees  tho 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  61 

State  officers,  and  those  interested  in  the  State  Governments,  will  intrigue, 
and  turn  the  popular  current  against  it." 

"  Mr.  L.  Martin  believed  Mr.  Morris  to  be  right,  that  after  a  while 
the  people  would  be  against  it ;  but  for  a  different  reason  from  that  alleged. 
He  believed  they  would  not  ratify  it,  unless  hurried  into  it  by  surprise." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  enlarged  on  the  idea  of  Mr.  L.  Martin,  in  which  he 
concurred;  represented  the  system  as  full  of  vices;  and  dwelt  on  the 
impropriety  of  destroying  the  existing  Confederation,  without  the  unan- 
imous consent  of  the  parties  to  it." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  moved  to  postpone  the  Article." 

"  Colonel  Mason  seconded  the  motion,  declaring  that  he  would  sooner 
chop  off  his  right  hand,  than  put  it  to  the  Constitution  as  it  now  stands. 
He  wished  to  s°e  some  points,  not  yet  decided,  brought  to  a  decision. 
.  .  Should  these  points  be  improperly  settled,  his  wish  would  then  be, 
to  bring  the  whole  subject  before  another  General  Convention." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  was  ready  for  a  postponement.  He  had 
long  wished  for  another  Convention,  that  will  have  the  firmness  to  provide 
a  vigorous  Government,  which  we  are  afraid  to  do." 

u  On  the  question  for  postponing,  —  Aye,  three  ;  No,  eight." 

"  On  the  question  on  the  Article,  —  Aye,  ten ;  Maryland,  No." 

September  5ths  —  The  proposition,  in  the  Report  of  the 
Committee  of  eleven,  —  "  To  add  to  the  clause,  '  to  raise 
and  support  armies/  the  words,  l  but  no  appropriation  of 
money  for  that  use  shall  be  for  a  longer  term  than  two  years/  " 
— being  taken  up,  — 

"  Mr.  Gerry  objected,  that  it  admitted  of  appropriations  to  an  army  for 
two  years,  instead  of  one  ;  for  which  he  could  not  conceive  a  reason  ;  that 
it  implied  there  was  to  be  a  standing  army,  which  he  inveighed  against,  as 
dangerous  to  liberty  —  as  unnecessary,  even  for  so  great  an  extent  of 
country  as  this  —  and  if  necessary,  some  restriction  on  the  number  and 
duration  ought  to  be  provided.  Nor  was  this  a  proper  time  for  such  an 
innovation.     The  people  would  not  bear  it." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  remarked,  that  the  appropriations  were  permitted  only, 
not  required,  to  be  for  two  years.  As  the  Legislature  is  to  be  biennially 
elected,  it  would  be  inconvenient  to  require  appropriations  to  be  for  one 
year,  as  there  might  be  no  session  within  the  time  necessary  to  renew 
them." 

"  The  clause  was  then  agreed  to,  nem.  con." 

a  The  part  of  the  clause,  in  the  same  Report,  — '  to  exercise 
like  authority  [exclusive  legislation]  over  all  pjaces  purchased 
for  the  erection  of  forts,  magazines,  arsenals,  dock-yards,  and 
other  needful  buildings/  —  coming  under  consideration,  —  " 

"  Mr.  Gerry  contended  that  this  power  might  be  made  use  of  to  enslave 
any  particular  State,  by  buying  up  its  territory,  and  that  the  strong-holds 
proposed  would  be  a  means  of  awing  the  State  into  an  undue  obedience  to 
the  General  Government." 

"Mr.  King  .  .  would  move  to  insert,  after  the  word  '  purchased,' 
the  words,  '  by  the  consent  of  the  Legislature  of  the  State.'  This  would 
certainly  make  the  power  safe." 


62  FACTS  TO  GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  *THEIR 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  seconded  the  motion,  which  was  agreed  to 
nem.  con.  ;  as  was  then  the  residue  of  the  clause,  as  amended." 

September  1th. — The  Section,  —  "The  Vice-President 
shall  be  ex-officio  President  of  the  Senate,"  —  being 
considered,  — 

"  Mr  Gerry  opposed  this  regulation.  We  might  as  well  put  the 
President  himself  at  the  head  of  the  Legislature.  The  close  intimacy  that 
must  subsist  hetween  the  President  and  Vice-President  makes  it  absolutely 
improper.     He  was  against  having  any  Vice-President." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris.  —  The  Vice-President  then  will  be  the  first 
heir-apparent  that  ever  loved  his  father.  If  there  should  be  no  Vice- 
President,  the  President  of  the  Senate  would  be  temporary  successor,  which 
would  amount  to  the  same  thing." 

"  Mr.  Sherman  saw  no  danger  in  the  case.  If  the  Vice-President  was 
not  to  be  President  of  the  Senate,  .  .  some  member,  by  being  made 
President,  must  be  deprived  of  his  vote,  unless  when  an  equal  division  of 
votes  might  happen  in  the  Senate,  which  would  be  but  seldom." 

"  Mr.  Randolph  concurred  in  the  opposition  to  the  clause." 

"  Colonel  Mason  thought  the  office  of  Vice-President  an  encroachment 
on  the  rights  of  the  Senate,  and  that  it  mixed  too  much  the  Legislative 
and  the  Executive,  which,  as  well  as  the  Judiciary  department,  ought  to 
be  kept  as  separate  as  possible." 

*  On  the  question,  '  Shall  the  Vice-President  be  ex-officio 
President  of  the  Senate?'  —  Aye,  eight;  No,  two." 

September  8th.  — "  Mr.  McHenry  observed,  that  the 
President  had  not  yet  been  any  where  authorized  to  convene 
the  Senate,  and  moved  to  amend  Article  VI.,  Section  2,  by- 
striking  out  the  words,  l  He  may  convene  the  Legislature  on 
extraordinary  occasions/  and  inserting,  '  He  may  convene 
both,  or  either  of  the  Houses,  on  extraordinary  occasions.' ' 

On  the  question,  —  Aye,  seven ;  No,  four. 

"  A  Committee  was  then  appointed  by  ballot,  to  revise  the 
style  of,  and  arrange,  the  Articles  which  had  been  agreed  to 
by  the  House.  The  Committee  consisted  of  Mr.  Johnson, 
Mr.  Hamilton,  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris,  Mr.  Madison,  and 
Mr.  King." 

"  Mr.  Williamso»  moved  that,  previous  to  this  work  of  the  Committee, 
the  clause  relating  to  the  number  of  the  House  of  Representatives  should 
be  reconsidered,  for  the  purpose  of  increasing  the  number." 

"  Mr.  Madison  seconded  the  motion." 

'*  Mr.  Sherman  opposed  it.  He  thought  the  provision  on  that  subject 
amply  sufficient." 

•'  Colonel  Hamilton  expressed  himself  with  great  earnestness  and 
anxiety  in  favor  of  the  motion.  He  avowed  himself  a  friend  to  a  vigorous 
government,  but  would  declare,  at  the  same  time,  he  held  it  essential  that 
the  popular  branch  of  it  should  be  on  a  broad  foundation,  lie  was  seriously 
of  opinion,  that  the  House  of  Representatives  was  on  so  nar.row  a  scale, 
as  to  be  really  dangerous,  and  to  warrant  a  jealousy  in  the  people,  for 
their  liberties." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  63 

"On  this  motion  to  reconsider,  —  Aye,  five;  Nbf  six." 

September  10th.  —  "  Mr.  Gerry  moved  to  reconsider  the 
Article, — ?  On  the  application  of  the  Legislatures  of  two-thirds 
of  the  States  in  the  Union,  for  an  amendment  of  this  Consti- 
tution, the  Legislature  of  the  United  States  shall  call  a 
Convention  for  that  purpose.'  n 

This  Constitution,  he  said,  is  to  be  paramount  to  the  State  Constitutions. 
It  follows,  hence,  from  this  article,  that  two-thirds  of  the  States  may 
obtain  a  Convention,  a  majority  of  which  can  bind  the  Union  to  inno- 
vations that  may  subveit  the  State  Constitutions  altogether.  He  asked 
whether  this  was  a  situation  proper  to  be  run  into  ? 

Colonel  Hamilton  seconded  the  motion;  but,  he  said,  with  a  different 
view  from  Mr.  Gerry.  He  did  not  object  to  the  consequences  stated  by 
Mr.  Gerry.  There  was  no  greater  evil  in  subjecting  the  people  of  the 
United  States  to  the  major  voice,  than  the  people  of  a  particular  State.  It 
had  been  wished  by  many,  and  was  much  to  have  been  desired,  that  an 
easier  mode  of  introducing  amendments  had  been  provided  by  the  Articles 
of  Confederation.  It  was  equally  desirable  now,  that  an  easy  mode  should 
be  established  for  supplying  defects  which  will  probably  appear  in  the 
new  system.  The  mode  proposed  was  not  adequate.  The  State  Legis- 
latures will  not  apply  for  alterations  ;  but  with  a  view  to  increase  their 
own  powers.  The  National  Legislature  will  be  the  first  to  perceive,  and 
will  be  the  most  sensible  to,  the  necessity  of  amendments  ;  and  ought  also 
to  be  empowered,  whenever  two-thirds  of  each  branch  should  concur,  to  call 
a  Convention.  There  could  be  no  danger  in  giving  this  power,  as  the 
people  would  finally  decide  in  the  case. 

"On  Mr.  Gerry's  motion  to  reconsider,  —  Aye,  nine;  No, 
one." 

Mr.  Sherman  moved  to  add  to  the  article,  "  or  the  Legislature  may 
propose  amendments  to  the  several  States ;  but  no  amendments  shall  be 
binding  until  consented  to  by  the  several   States." 

"  Mr.  Gerry  seconded  the  motion." 

Mr.  Madison  moved  to  postpone  the  consideration  of  the  proposition,  in 
order  to  take  up  the  following  :  — 

"  The  Legislature  of  the  United  States,  whenever  two-thirds 
of  both  Houses  shall  deem  necessary,  or  on  application  of 
two-thirds  of  the  Legislatures  of  the  several  States,  shall 
propose  amendments  to  this  Constitution,  which  shall  be  valid 
to  all  intents  and  purposes  as  part  thereof,  when  the  same 
shall  have  been  ratified  by  three-fourths,  at  least,  of  the  Legis- 
latures of  the  several  States,  or  by  Conventions  in  three- 
fourths  thereof,  as  one  or  the  other  mode  of  ratification  may 
be  proposed  by  the  Legislature  of  the  United  States." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton  seconded  the  motion." 
"  The  postponement  being  agreed  to,"  — 

"  On  the  proposition  of  Mr.  Madison  and  Colonel 
Hamilton,"  with  the  addition  of  the  proviso  olfered  by  Mr. 
Rutledge,  —  Aye,  nine  ;  JSlo,  one.* 

*  The  proviso  is  contained  in  the  9th  Section  of  the  first  Article  in  the  Constitution. 


64  FACTS  TO  GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

"Mr.  Pinckney  moved,  that  it  be  an  instruction  to  tbe  Committee  for 
r  vising  the  style  an  J  arrangement  of  the  Articles  agreed  on,  to  prepare  an 
address  to  the  people,  to  accompany  the  present  Constitution,  and  to  be 
laid,  with  the  same,  before  the  United  States  in  Congress." 

u  The  motion  itself  was  referred  to  the  Committee, 
nem.  con." 

September  12th.  —  "  Doctor  Johnson,  from  the  Committee  of  utyle,  etc., 
reported  a  digest  of  the  plan,  of  which  printed  copies  were  ordered  to  be 
famished  to  the  members.  He  also  reported  a  letter  to  accompany  the 
plan  to  Congress." 

"  The  clause  relating  to  exports  being  reconsidered  at  the  instance  of 
Colonel  Mason, — 

u  He  moved  as  follows  :  — '  provided  nothing  herein  contained  shall  be 
construed  to  restrain  any  State  from  laying  duties  on  exports  for  the  sole 
purpose  of  defraying  the  charges  of  inspecting,  packing,  storing,  and 
in  le  unifying  the  losses  in  keeping  the  commodities  in  the  care  of  public 
officers,  before  exportation.'  " 

"  Mr.  Madison  seconded  the  motion." 

"  Mr.  Gorham  and  Mr.  Langdon  thought  there  would  be  no  security, 
if  tie  proviso  should  be  agreed  to,  for  the  States  exporting  through  other 
States,  against  the  oppressions  of  the  latter.  How  was  redress  to  be 
obtained,  in  case  duties  should  be  laid  beyond  the  purpose  expressed  ?" 

''Mr.  Madison. — There  will  be  the  same  security  as  in  other  cases. 
The  j  .risdiction  of  the  Supreme  Court  must  be  the  source  of  redress. 
So  f.T  only  had  provision  been  made  by  the  plan,  against  injurious  acts  of 
the  Spates.  His  own  opinion  was,  that  this  was  insufficient.  A  negative 
on  the  State  laws  alone  could  meet  all  the  shapes  which  these  could  assume. 
But  this  had  been  overruled."  * 

September  15th.  —  "  Mr.  Randolph  animadverting  on  the  indefinite  and 
dang-  tous  power  given  by  the  Constitution  to  Congress,  expressing  the 
pain  he  felt  at  differing  from  the  body  of  the  Convention  on  the  close 
of  the  great  and  awful  subject  of  their  labors,     .  .     and  anxiously 

wishng  lor  some  accommodating  expedient  which  would  relieve  hiin  fruin 
his  embarrassments,  made  a  motion  importing,  '  that  amendments  to  the 
plan  might  be  offered  by  the  State  Conventions,  which  should  be  submit  ed 
10,  and  finally  decided  on,  by  another  general  Convention.'  Sho  ild  th>s 
proposition  be  disregarded,  it  would,  he  said,  be  impossible  for  him  to  put 
his  name  to  the  instrument." 

"  Colonel  Mason  seconded  and  followed  Mr.  Randolph  in  animadversions 
on  the  dangerous  power  and  structure  of  the  Government,  concluding  that 
it  would  end  cither  in  monarchy,  or  a  tyrannical  aristocracy.  .  .  This 
Constitu  ion  had  been  formed  without  the  knowledge  or  idea  of  the  pe  pi  *. 
A  second  Convention  will  know  more  of  the  sense  of  the  people.  .  .  'Ast'se 
Constitution  now  stmds,  he  could  neither  give  it  his  support  or  vote  in 
Virginia  ;  and  he  could  not  sign  here  what  he  could  not  support  there. 
With  the  expedient  of  another  Convention,  as  proposed,  he  could  sign." 

"  Mr.  Pinckney.  —  These  declarations  from  members  so  respectable,  at 
the  cl  jse  of  this  important  scene,  give  a  peculiar  solemnity  to  the  present 
moment.  .  .  Nothing  but  confusion  and  contrariety  will  spring  from 
the  experiment  [proposed].  He  was  not  without  objections,  as  well  as 
others,  to  the  plan.  .  .  But  apprehending  the  danger  of  a  general 
confusion,  and  an  ultimate  decision  by  the  sword,  he  should  give  the  plan 
his  support." 

*  See  Mr.  Madison's  expressions  as  to  such  a  power,  on  pp.  16,  40,  58 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  65 

"  Mr.  Gerry  stated  the  objections  which  determined  him  to  withhold 

his  name  from  the  Constitution 

M  He  could,  however,  he  said,  get  over  all  these,  if  the  rights  of  the  citizens 
were  not  rendered  insecure  — first,  by  the  general  power  of  the  Legis- 
lature to  make  what  laws  they  may  pie  >se  to  call  •  necessary  and  proper  ;' 
s  condly,  to  raise  armies  and  money  without  limit  ;  thirdly,  to  establish  a 
t'ibunal  without  juries,  which  will  be  a  Star  Chamber  as  to  civil  cases. 
Under  such  a  view  of  the  Constitution,  the  best  that  could  be  done,  he 
conceived,  was  to  provide  for  a  second  General  Convention." 

"  On  the  question,  on  the  proposition  of  Mr.  Randolph,  all 
the  States  answered,  —  No" 

"  On  the  question,  to  agree  to  the  Constitution  as  amended, 
all  the  States,  —  Aye." 

"  The  Constitution  was  then  ordered  to  be  engrossed,  and 
the  House  Adjourned.'' 

"  Monday,  September  11th." 

"  The  engrossed  Constitution  being  read,  — 

"  Doctor  Franklin  rose  to  offer  a  speech  which  he  had  prepared  in 
writing  for  the  occasion,  and  which  Mr.  WiLson  read,  as  follows  :  — 

"  Mr.  President, — 

"  I  confess  that  there  are  several  parts  of  this  Constitution  which  I  do 
not  at  present  approve,  but  I  am  not  sure  I  never  shall  approve  them. 
For,  having  lived  long,  I  hare  experienced  many  instances  of  being 
obliged,  by  better  information,  or  fuller  consideration,  to  change  opinions, 
ev  jn  on  important  subjects,  which  I  once  thought  right,  but  found  to  he 
otherwise.  It  is  therefore  that  the  older  I  grow,  the  more  apt  I  am  to 
doubt  my  own  judgment,  and  to  pay  more  respect  to  the  judgment  of 

others. In    these  sentiments,  sir,  I  agree  to 

this  Constitution,  with  all  its  faults,  if  they  are  such,  because  I  think  a 

General  Government  necessary  for  us. I  doubt  too 

whether  any  other  Convention  we  can  obtain  may  be  able  to  make  a  better 

Constitution Thus  I  consent,  sir, 

to  'his  Constitution,  because  I  expect  no  better,  and  because  I  am  not 
sure  that  it  is  not  the  best.  The  opinions  I  have  had  of  its  errors  I  sacrifice 
to  the  public  good.  I  have  never  whispered  a  syllable  of  them  abroad. 
Within  these  walls.they  were  born,  and  here  they  shall  die.  If  every  one 
of  us,  in  returning  to  our  constituents,  were  to  report  the  objections  he  has 
had  to  it,  and  endeavor  to  gain  partisans  in  support  of  them,  we  might 
prevent  its  being  generally  received;  and  thereby  lose  all  the  salutary 
effaets  and  great  advantages  resulting  naturally  in  our  favor  among  foreign 
nations,  as  well  as  among  ourselves,  from  our  real  or  apparent  unanimity. 
.  I  hope,  therefore,  that  for  our  own  sakes,  as  a  part  of  the  people, 
and  for  the  sake  of  posterity,  we  shall  act  heartily  and  unanimously  in 
recommend  ng  the  Constitution  (if  approved  by  Congress  and' confirmed 
by  the  Contentions)  wherever  our  influence  may  extend  ;  and  turn  our 
future  thoughts  and  endeavors  to  the  means  of  having  it  well  administered. 

"  On  the  whole,  sir,  1  cannot  help  expressing  a  wish  that  every  member 
of  the  Convention,  who  may  still  have  objections  to  it,  would  with  me,  on 
this  occasion,  doubt  a  little  of  his  own  infallibility,  and,  to  make  manifest 
our  unanimity,  put  his  name  to  this  instrument." 

"He  then  .  .  offered  the  following  as  a  convenient  form, 
for  signing;  viz.:  —  'Done  in  Convention  by  the  unanimous 
consent  of  the  States  present,  the  seventeenth  of  September, 


66  FACTS  TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS,   AS   THEIR 

etc.     In  witness  whereof  we  have  hereunto  subscribed  our 
names.'  "• 

Mr.  Madison  states  that,  "  This  ambiguous  form  had  been 
drawn  up  by  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morrts,  in  order  to  gain  the 
dissenting  members,  and  put  into  the  hands  of  Doctor 
Franklin,  that  it  might  have  the  better  chance  of  success.'7 

M  Mr.  Gorham  said,  if  not  too  late,  he  could  wish,  for  the  purpose  of 
lessening  objections  to  the  Constitution,  that  the  clause,  declaring  that  the 
4  number  of  liepresentatives  shall  not  exceed  one  for  ever^  forty  thousand,' 
which  had  produced  so  much  discussion,  might  be  yet  reconsidered,  in 
order  to  strike  out  *  forty  thousand,'  and  insert  *  thirty  thousand.'  This 
would  not,  h«  remarked,  establish  that  as  an  absolute  rule,  but  only  give 
Congress  a  greater  latitude,  which  could  nut  be  thought  unreasonable." 

"  Mr.  King  and  Mr.  Carroll  seconded  and  supported  the  ideas  of 
Mr.   Gorham." 

"  When  the  President  rose  for  the  purpose  of  putting  the  question,  he 
said  that,  although  his  situation  had  hitherto  restrained  him  from  offering 
his  sentiments  on  questions  depending  in  the  House,  and,  it  might  be 
thought,  ought  now  to  impose  silence  on  him,  yet  he  could  not  forbear 
expressing  his  wish  that  the  alteration  proposed  might  take  place.  It  was 
much  to  be  desired,  that  the  objections  to  the  plan  recommended  might  he 
made  as  few  as  possible.  The  smallness  of  the  proportion  of  Representatives 
had  been  considered,  by  many  members  of  the  Convention,  an  insufficient 
security  for  the  rights  and  interests  of  the  people.  He  acknowledged  that 
it  had  always  appeared  to  himself  among  the  exceptionable  parts  of  the 
plan  ;  and  late  as  the  present  moment  was  for  admitting  amendments,  he 
thought  this  of  so  much  consequence,  that  it  would  give  him  much  satis- 
faction to  see  it  adopted."  * 

"  No  opposition  was  made  to  the  proposition  of  Mr. 
Gorham,  and  it  was  agreed  to  unanimously." 

"  On  the  question  to  agree  to  the  Constitution,  enrolled,  in 
order  to  be  signed,  it  was  agreed  to,  all  the  States  answering, 
Aye." 

"  Mr.  Randolph  then  rose,  and  .  .  apologized  for  his  refusing  to 
sign  the  Constitution,  notwithstanding  the  vast  majority  and  venerable 
names  that  would  give  sanction  to  its  wisdom  and  its  worth.  He  said, 
however,  that  he  did  not  mean  by  this  refusal  to  decide  that  he  should 
oppose  the  Constitution  without-doors.  He  meant  only  to  keep  himself 
free  to  be  governed  by  his  duty,  as  it  should  be  prescribed  by  his  future 
judgment.  He  refused  to  sign,  because  he  thought  the  object  of  the 
Convention  would  be  frustrated  by  the  al  ernative  which  it  presented  to 
the  people.  Nine  States  will  fail  to  ratify  the  plan,  and  confusion  must 
ensue." 

"  Mr.  Gouverneur  Morris  said,  that  he  too  had  objections,  but,  consid- 
ering the  present  plan  as  the  best  that  was  to  be  attained,  he  should  take 
it  with  ah  its  faults.  The  majority  had  determined  in  its  favor,  and  by 
that  determination  he  should  abide.  The  moment  this  plan  goes  forth,  all 
other  considerations  will  be  laid  aside,  and  the  great  question  will  be, — 
Shall  there  be  a  National  Government  or  not?  and  this  must  take  place, 
or  a  general  anarchy  will  be  the  alternative.  He  remarked  that  the  signing, 
in  the  form  proposed,  related  only  to  the  fact  that  the  Slates  present  were 
unanimous." 

*  Mr.  Madison  says,  in  a  note,  "This  was  the  only  occasion  on  which  the  President 
entered  at  all  into  the  discussions  of  the  Convention." 


i 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  67 

"  Mr.  Williamson. —  .  .  For  himself  he  did  not  think  abetter  plan 
was  to  be  expected,  and  had  no  scruples  against  putting  his  name  to  it." 

"  Colonel  Hamilton  expressed  his  anxiety  that  every  member  should 
sign.  A  few  characters  of  consequence,  by  opposing,  or  even  refusing  to 
sign,  the  Constitution,  might  do  infinite  mischief,  by  kindling  the 
latent  sparks  that  lurk  under  an  enthusiasm  in  favor  of  the  Convention, 
which  may  soon  subside.  No  man's  ideas  were  more  remote  from  the 
p'an  than  his  were  known  to  be  ;  but  is  it  possible  to  deliberate  between 
anarchy  and  convulsion  on  one  side,  and  the  chance  of  good  to  be 
expected  from  the  plan  on  the  other?" 

"  Mr.  Blount  said,  he  had  declared  that  he  would  not  sign  so  as  to 
pledge  himself  in  support  of  the  plan,  but  he  was  relieved  by  the  form 
proposed,  and  would,  without  committing  himself,  attest  the  fact  that  the 
plan  was  the  unanimous  act  of  the  States  in  Convention."  * 

"  Mr.  Randolph  could  not  but  regard  the  signing  in  the  proposed  form, 
as  the  same  with  signing  the  Constitution.  The  change  of  form,  therefore, 
could  make  no  difference  with  him.  ...  He  repeated  his  persuasion, 
that  the  holding  out  this  plan,  with  a  final  alternative  to  the  people  of 
accepting  or  rejecting  it  in  toto,  would  really  produce  the  anarchy  and 
civil  convulsions  which  were  apprehended  from  the  refusal  of  individuals 
to  sign  it." 

"Mr.  Gerry. —  .  .  Whilst  the  plan  was  depending,  he  had  treated 
it  with  all  the  freedom  he  thought  it  deserved.  He  now  felt  himself  bound, 
as  he  was  disposed,  to  treat  it  with  the  respect  due  to  the  act  of  the 
Convention.  He  hoped  he  should  not  violate  that  respect  in  declaring, 
on  this  occasion,  his  fears  that  a  civil  war  may  result  from  the  present 
crisis  of  the  United  States.  In  Massachusetts,  particularly,  he  saw  the 
danger  of  this  calamitous  event.  In  that  State  there  are  two  parties,  one 
devoted  to  Democracy,  the  worst,  he  thought,  of  all  political  evils  ;  the 
other,  as  violent  in  the  opposite  extreme.  Jb'rom  the  collision  of  thes?,  in 
opposing  and  resisting  the  Constitution,  confusion  was  greatly  to  be  feared. 
He  had  thought  it  necessary,  for  this  and  other  reasons,  that  the  plan 
should  have  been  proposed  in  a  more  mediating  shape,  in  order  to  abate 
the  heat  and  opposition  of  parties.  As  it  had  been  pissed  by  the 
Convention,  he  was  persuaded  it  would  have  the  contrary  effect  He  could 
not,  therefore,  by  signing  the  Constitution,  pledge  himself  to  abide  by  it 
at  all  events.     The  proposed  form  made  no  difference  with  him.'; 

"  General  Pjnckney. — We  are  not  likely  to  gain  many  converts  by 
the  ambiguity  of  the  proposed  form  of  signing.  He  thought  it  best  to  be 
candid,  and  let  the  form  speak  the  substance.  If  the  meaning  of  the 
signers  be  left  in  doubt,  his  purpose  would  not  be  answered.  He  should 
6>gn  the  Constitution  with  a  view  to  support  it  with  all  his  influence,  and 
wished  to  pltdge  himself  accordingly." 

"  Mr.  Ingersoll  did  not  consider  the  signing,  either  as  a  mere  attestation 
of  the  fact,  or  as  pledging  the  signers  to  support  the  Constitution  at  all 
events  ;  but  as  a  recommendation  of  what,  all  things  considered,  was  the 
most  eligible." 

"  Mr.  King  suggested  that  the  Journals  of  the  Convention  should  be 
either  destroyed,  or  deposited  in  the  custody  of  the  President.  He  thought, 
if  suffered  to  be  made  public,  a  bad  use  would  be  made  of  them  by  those 
who  would  wish  to  prevent  the  adoption  of  the  Constitution." 

"  Mr.  Wilson  preferred  the  second  expedient.  He  had  at  one  time 
liked  the  first  best ;  hut,  as  false  suggestions  may  be  propagated,  it  should 
not  be  made  impossible  to  contradicc  them." 

*  Mr.  William  Blount,  from  North  Carolina.    He  took  his  seat  in  the  Convention, 

June  20«A. 


68  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

"  A  question  was  then  put  on  depositing  the  Journals,  and 
other  papers  of  the  Convention,  in  the  hands  of  the  President  ; 
on  which,  —  Aye,  ten  ;  No,  one." 

"It  was  resolved,  nem.  con.,  'that  he  retain  the  Journal 
and  other  papers,  subject  to  the  order  of  Congress,  if  ever 
formed  under  the  Constitution.'  " 

"  The  members  then  proceeded  to  sign  the  Constitution." 

What  those  signers  meant  and  understood  to  be  the 
distinctive  nature,  and  whatthe  specific  objects  and  purposes 
contemplated,  they  most  explicitly  declared  in  the  following 
first  clause  of  the  Instrument :  — 

"We,  the  people  [not  of  the  several  States,  but]  of  tfie 
United  States,  in  order  to  form  a  more  perfect  Union,  e>tablisli 
justice,  insure  domestic  tranquillity,  provide  for  the  common 
defence,  promote  the  general  welfare,  and  secure  the  blessings 
of  liberty  to  ourselves  and  our  posterity,  do  ordain  and 
establish  this  Constitution  for  the  United  States  of  America/7 

In  perfect  harmony  with  the  foregoing  first  clause,  are  the 
following  extracts  from  the  address  or  letter  which,  as 
proposed,  Sept.  10th,  was  sent  with  the  Constitution  to 
Congress. 

"September  \lth,  1787." 

1  We  have  now  the  honor  to  submit  to  the  consideration  of 
the  United  States  in  Congress  assembled,  that  Constitution 
which  has  appeared  to  us  the  most  advisable. 

"In  all  our  deliberations  on  this  subject,  we  kept  steadily 
in  our  view,  that  which  appears  to  us  the  greatest  interest  of 
every  true  American, — the  consolidation  of  our  Union ;  in 
which  is  involved  our  prosperity,  felicity,  safety,  perhaps  our 
national  existence. 

"That  it  may  promote  the  lasting  welfare  of  that  country 
so  dear  to  us  all,  and  secure  her  freedom  and  happiness,  is 
our  most  ardent  wish. 

"  With  great  respect,  etc., 

"  George  Washington,  President." 

"  By  unanimous  order  of  the  Convention." 

As  Mr.  Madison  relates, —  "The  Constitution  being;  signed  'y  all  the 
members,  except  Mr.  Randolph,  Mr.  Mason,  and  Mr.  Gerry,  who  declined 
giving  it  the  sanction  of  their  names,  the  Convention  dissolved  itself  by 
an  adjournment  sine  die." 

"  Whilst  the  last  members  were  sign;ng,  Doctor  Franklin,  looking 
towards  the  President's  chair,  at  the  back  of  which  a  rising  nun  happ  ne»l 
to  be  painted,  observed  to  a  few  members  near  him,  that  painters  I  ad 
found  it  difficult  to  distinguish  in  their  art,  a  rising,  from  a  setting  sin. 
I  have,  said  he,  often  and  often,  in  the  course  of  the  session,  an  t  the 
vicissitud<  s  of  my  hopes  »nd  fears  as  to  its  issue,  looked  at  that,  behind 
the  President,  without  being  able  to  tell  whether  it  was  rising  or  setting  ; 
but  now,  at  length,  I  have  the  happiness  to  know,  that  it  in  a  rising  and 
not  a  stttiny  sun." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  *88,  '89.  €9 

Such  was  the  progress,  and  such  the  conclusion,  of  the 
difficult  and  vastly  momentous  labors  of  the  Convention  of 
1787,  —  labors,  which  ought  to  be  far  better  understood,  so 
that  if  possible  they  may  be  justly  appreciated  by  every 
American  citizen,  whether  native  or  adopted. 

It  is  suggested,  as  a  matter  of  much  interest  and  conse- 
quence, to  notice  the  modifying  effects  of  the  influences 
exerted  by  some  of  the  members,  of  broadest  and  maturest 
experience;  of  most  cultivated,  enlarged,  and  comprehensive 
patriotism  ;  as  those  effects  are  apparent  from  the  beginning 
till  the  full  attainment  of  that  auspicious  result,  which  had 
been  long  hoped  for,  with  manifestly  anxious  and  tremulous 
doubt, —  whether  hard-earned  Independence  was  to  run  riot 
in  lawless  anarchy  ;  or  whether  dear-bought  Liberty  was  to 
be  regulated  and  secured  by  the  operations  of  a  well-organized 
and  adequately  efficient  government. 

As  the  Achievement  of  independence  gave  to  the  Declara- 
tion its  reputed  importance ;  so,  the  Construction  of  the 
government  by  that  Convention  gave  to  both  of  them,  their 
practical  value  and  significance. 

The  portion  of  the  debates  relating  to  slavery,  have  been 
purposely  omitted ;  because  the  final  abolition  of  it.seems  to 
have  superseded  the  expediency  of  further  controversy  or 
agitation  on  the  subject.  Besides,  it  appeared  to  be  incon- 
sistent with  the  main  design,  to  introduce  a  subject  likely  to 
divert  attention  from  that  continued  line  of  division,  which 
so  clearly  marked  the  whole  proceedings  of  the  Convention, 
which  has  been  mentioned  or  alluded  to  in  these  pages  as 
deranging  and  endangering  the  plans  of  public  operations 
from  an  early  stage  of  the  Revolution,  and  which,  on  that 
floor,  as  has  been  shown,  more  than  once  threatened  to 
entirely  defeat  the  best-directed,  the  most  strenuous  and 
ablest,  efforts  to  remedy  the  rapidly  increasing  complication 
of  appalling  evils,  then  prevailing  throughout  the  length  and 
breadth  of  the  country. 

Nor  did  that  division  end  with  the  process  of  forming  the 
Constitution. 

But  it  continued  still  so  unabated,  that,  during  the  interval 
of  suspense  which  followed,  labors  no  less  difficult  and  anx- 
ious than  in  its  formation,  were  required  and  effectively 
performed  to  procure  its  acceptance. 

Moreover,  decidedly  opposite  opinions  of  its  character  and 
tendencies  were  as  emphatically  declared  by  some  prominent 
men  outside  of  the  Convention,  as  such  opinions  were  de- 
clared' by  some  of  the  members  inside  of  that  justly  venerated 
Assembly. 

These  facts  would  seem  to  need  for  confirmation,  no  plainer 
evidence  than  the  immediately  following  extracts. 


70 


General  Washington-,  to  David  Stewart.  —  Mount  Vernon,  Oct.  17, 
1787.  "  Dear  Sir,  —  As  the  enclosed  Advertiser  contains  a  speech  of  Mr. 
Wilson's,  as  able,  candid,  and  honesc  a  member  as  was  in  the  Convention, 
which  will  place  the  most  of  Colonel  Mason's  objections  in  their  true 
point  of  light,  I  send  it  to  you.  The  republication  of  it,  if  you  can  get  it 
done,  will  be  serviceable  at  this  juncture." 

Same,  to  Colonel  Hamilton,  Oct.  18,  1787.  —  "It  is  with  unfeigned 
concern  I  p  rceive  a  p  ditical  dispute  has  arisen  between  Gjvernor 
Clinton  and  yourself.  For  both  of  you  I  have  the  highest  esteem  and 
regard.  But,  as  you  siy  it  is  insinuated  by  some  of  your  political  adver- 
saries, and  may  obtain  credit,  •  that  you  palmed  yourself  upon  me,  and 
were  dismissed  from  my  family,'  and  call  on  me  to  do  you  justice  by  a 
recital  of  facts,  I  do  therefore  explicitly  declare,  that  both  charges  are  en- 
tirely unfounded.  With  respect  to  t^e  first,  I  have  no  cause  to  believe 
that  you  ever  took  a  single  step  to  accomplish,  or  had  the  most  distant 
idea  of  receiving,  an  appointment  in  my  family,  till  you  were  invited  into 
it;  and,  with  respect  to  the  second,  your  quitting  it  was  altogether  the 
effect  of  your  own  choice. 

"  Whea  the  situation  of  this  country  calls  loudly  for  vigor  and  una- 
nimity, it  is  to  be  lamented  that  gentlemen  of  talents  and  character  should 
disagree  in  their  sentiments  for  promoting  the  public  weal  ;  but,  un- 
fortunately, this  ever  has  been,  and  probably  ever  will  be  the  case,  in  the 
affairs  of  mankind." 

Thomas  Jefferson,  to  John  Adams, #  Paris,  Nov.  13,  1787.  —  "  How  do 
you  like  our  new  Constitution?  I  confe?s  there  are  things  in  it,  which 
stagger  all  my  dispositions  to  subscribe  to  what  such  an  Assembly  has 
propped.  The  House  of  federal  Representatives  will  not  be  adequate  to  the 
management  of  affairs,  either  foreign  or  federal.  Their  President  seems  a 
bad  edition  of  a  Polish  king.  He  may  be  elected  from  four  years  to  four 
years,  for  life.  Reason  and  experience  prove  to  us,  that  a  Chief  Magistrate, 
so  continuable,  is  an  office  for  life.  .  .  .  Once  in  office,  and  p  >ssessing 
the  military  force  of  the  Union,  without  the  aid  or  check  of  a  council,  he 
would  not  be  easily  dethroned,  even  if  the  people  could  be  induced  to 
withdraw  their  votes  from  him.  I  wish  that  at  the  end  of  the  four  years, 
they  had  made  him  for  ever  ineligible  a  second  time.  Indeed,  I  think  all 
the  good  of  this  new  Constitution  might  have  been  couched  in  three  or 
four  new  Articles,  to  be  addei  to  the  good,  old,  and  venerable  fabric,f 
which  should  have  been  preserved,  even  as  a  religious  relic." 

General  Washington,  toJBusHROD  Washington,!  Nov.  10, 1787.  —  "  The 
only  question  with  me  was,  whether  it  [the  Constitution]  would  go  forth 
under  favorable  auspices,  or  receive  the  stamp  of  disapprobation.  The  oppo- 
nents I  expected  (for  it  ever  has  been,  that  toe  adversaries  of  a  measure  are 
more  active  than  its  friends),  would  endeavor  to  stamp  it  with  unfavorable 
impressions,  iu  order  to  bias  the  judgment  that  is  ultimately  to  decide 
upon  it.  This  is  evidently  the  case  with  the  writers  in  opposition,  whose 
objections  are  better  calculated  to  alarm  the  fears,  than  to  convince  the 
judgment,  of  their  readers.  They  build  their  objections  upon  principles 
that  do  not  exist,  which  the  Constitution  does  not  support  them  in,  and 
the  existence  of  which  has,  by  an  appeal  to  the  Constitution  itself,  been 
flatly  denied  ;  and  tlfen,  as  if  they  were  unanswerable,  draw  all  the 
dreadful  consequences  that  are  necessary  to  alarm  the  apprehensions  of  the 
ignorant  or  unthinking.  It  is  not  the  interest  of  the  major  part  of  these 
characters  to  be  convinced ;  nor  will  their  local  views  yield  to  arguments 

*  Mr.  Jefferson  and  Mr.  Adams  were  American  Ministers  at  foreign  courts;  the 
former,  at  that  of  France,  the  latter  at  the  court  of  Great  Britain. 

t  By  "  venerable  fabric  "  Mr.  Jefferson  meant  the  Confederation. 

$  Afterwards  Judge  Washington,  of  the  supreme  court  of  the  United  States. 


ANCESTORS   WERE   GUIDED,   IN  1737,   '88,   '89.  71 

which  do  not  accord  with  their  present  or  future  prospects.  .  .  It  ia 
agreed  on  all  hands,  that  no  Government  can  be  well  administered  without 
powers  ;  yet,  the  instant  these  are  delegated,  though  those  who  are 
intrusted  with  the  administration,  are  no  more  than  the  creatures  of  the 
people,  act  as  it  were  but  for  a  day,  and  are  answerable  for  every  step  they 
take ;  they  are,  from  the  moment  they  receive  it,  set  down  as  tyrants. 
One  would  conceive  from  this,  that  their  natures  are  immediately  changed, 
and  that  they  have  no  other  disposition  but  to  oppress.  Of  these  things, 
in  a  government  constituted  and  guarded  as  ours  is,  I  have  no  idea,  and 
do  firmly  believe  that,  whilst  many  ostensible  reasons  are  assigned  to 
prevent  the  adoption  of  it,  the  real  ones  are  concealed  behind  the  curtain; 
because  they  are  not  of  a  nature  to  appear  in  open  day.  I  believe  further, 
supposing  them  pure,  that  evils  as  great  result  from  too  great  jealousy,  as 
from  the  want  of  it." 

Thomas  Jefferson,  to  Colonel  Smith,*  Nov.  13,  1787.  —  "I  do  not 
know  whether  it  is  to  yourself,  or  Mr.  Adams,  I  am  to  give  my  thanks  for 
the  copy  of  the  new  Constitution.  I  beg  leave  through  you,  to  place  them 
'where  due.  .  .  .  There  are  very  good  Articles  in  it,  and  very  bad.  I 
do  not  know  which  preponderate.  .  .  .  "What  we  have  always  read 
of  the  elections  of  Polish  Kings,  should  have  forever  excluded  this  idea 
of  one  continuable  for  life.  .  .  .  The  British  Ministry  have  so  long 
hired  their  gazetteers  to  repeat,  and  model  into  every  form,  lies  about  our 
being  in  anarchy,  that  the  world  has  at  length  believed  them,  .  .  . 
and  what  is  more  wonderful,  we  have  believed  them  ourselves.  Yet, 
where  does  this  anarchy  exist  ?  Where  did  it  ever  exist,  except  in  the 
eingle  instance  of  Massachusetts?  And  can  history  produce  an  instance 
of  rebellion  so  honorably  conducted  ?  I  say  nothing  of  its  motives.  .  .  . 
God  forbid  we  should  ever  be  twenty  years  without  such  a  rebellion. 
.  .  .  We  have  had  thirteen  States  independent  for  eleven  years. 
There  has  been  one  rebellion.  That  comes  to  one  rebellion  in  a  century 
and  a  half,  for  each  State.  .  .  .  What  country  can  preserve  its 
liberties,  if  its  rulers  are  not  warned,  from  time  to  time,  that  this  people 
preserve  the  spirit  of  resistance  ?  Let  them  take  arms.  The  remedy  is, 
to  set  them  right  as  to  facts,  pardon  and  pacify  them.  What  signify  a 
few  lives  lost  in  a  century  or  two?  The  tree  of  liberty  must  be 
refreshed  from  time  to  time,  with  the  blood  of  patriots  and  tyrants.  It  is 
its  natural  manure.  Our  Convention  has  been  too  much  impressed  by  the 
insurrection  of  Massachusetts ;  and,  on  the  spur  of  the  moment,  they  are 
setting  up  a  kite  to  keep  the  hen-yard  in  order.  I  hope  in  God,  this 
Article  [relating  to  the  office  of  President]  will  be  rectified,  before  the  new 
Constitution  is  accepted." 

General  Washington,  to  Colonel  Hamilton.  —  Nov.  10,  1787. 
"Dear  Sir, — I  thank  you  for  the  pamphlet  contained  in  your  letter  of  the 
30th  ultimo.  For  the  remaining  numbers  of  Publius  I  shall  acknowledge 
myself  obliged,  as  I  am  persuaded  the  subject  will  be  well  handled  by  the 
author  of  them." 

Same,  to  David  Stewart,  Nov.  30,  1787.  —  "I  have  seen  no  publication 
yet,  that  ought  in  my  judgment  to  shake  the  proposed  Constitution  in 
the  mind  of  an  impartial  and  candid  public.  In  fine,  1  have  hardly  seen 
one,  that  is  not  addressed  to  the  passions  of  the  people,  and  obviously 
calculated  to  alarm  their  fears.  .  .  .  That  there  are  some  writers,  and 
others  perhaps  who  have  not  written,  that  wish  to  see  this  Union  divided 
into  several  Confederacies,  is  pretty  evident.  As  an  antidote  to  these 
opinions,  and  in  order  to  investigate  the  ground  of  objections  to  the 
Constitution  which  is  submitted,  the  Federalist,  under  the  signature  of 
Publius,  is  written.  The  numbers  which  have  been  published,  I  send  you. 
If  there,  is  a  printer  in  Richmond,  who  is  really  well  disposed  to  support 

*  Colonel  Smith  was  Minister  Adams's  Secretary. 


72  FACTS-  TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS   AS   THEIR 


the  new  Constitution,  he  would  do  well  to  give  them  a  place  in  his  paper. 
They  are,  I  think  I  may  venture  to  say,  written  by  able  men  ;  and,  be.'ore 
they  are  finished,  will,  or  1  am  mistaken,  place  matters  in  a  true  point 
of  light."* 

Thomas  Jefferson,  to  William  Carmichael,  Dec.  11,  1787. — "  Mr. 
Adams,  as  you  know,  has  asked  his  recall.  This  has  been  granted,  and  Col- 
onel Smith  is  to  return  too. 

"  Our  new  Constitution  is  powerfully  attacked  in  the  American  news- 
papers. The  objections  are,  that  its  effect  would  be,  to  form  the  thirteen 
States  into  one  ;  that,  proposing  to  melt  all  down  into  one  General  Govern- 
ment, they  have  fenced  the  people  by  no  Declaration  of  Rights  ;  they  have 
not  renounced  the  power  of  keeping  a  standing  army  ;  they  have  not 
secured  the  liberty  of  the  press  ;  they  have  reserved  the  power  of  abolishing 
Trials  by  Jury  in  civil  cases  ;  they  have  proposed  that  the  laws  of  the 
Federal  Legislature  shall  be  paramount  to  the  laws  and  constitutions  of 
the  States  ;  they  have  abandoned  rotation  in  office  ;  and  particularly,  their 
President  may  be  re-elected  from  four  years  to  four  years,  for  life,  so  as  to 
render  him  a  king  for  life,  like  a  king  of  Pohind  ;  and  they  have  not  given 
him  either  the  check  or  aid  of  a  council.  To  these  they  add  calculations 
of  expense,  etc. 

"  You  will  perceive  that  those  objections  are  serious,  and  some  of  them  not 
without  foundation.  The  Constitution,  however,  has  been  received  with 
very  general  enthusiasm,  and  as  far  as  can  be  judged  from  external  dem- 
onstrations, the  bulk  of  the  people  are  eager  to  adopt  it.  In  the  Eastern 
States,  the  printers  will  print  nothing  against  it,  unless  the  writer  sub- 
scribes his  name.  ...  In  New  York,  there  is  a  division.  The 
Governor  (Clinton)  is  known  to  be  hostile  to  it.f  .  .  .  Pennsylvania 
is  divided,  and  all  the  bitterness  of  her  factions  has  been  kindled  anew  on 
it.  But  the  party  in  favor  of  it  is  strongest,  both  in  and  out  of  the  Legis- 
lature. This  is  the  party  anciently  of  Mocris,  Wilson,  etc.  ...  As 
to  Virginia,  two  of  her  Delegates  refused  to  sign  it.  .  .  .  Besidt  s 
these,  Henry,  HARRison,  Nelson,  and  the  Lees  are  against  it.  General 
Washington  will  be  for  it,  but  it  is  not  in  his.character  to  exert  himself 
much  in  the  case.  Madison  will  be  its  main  pillar  ;  but  it  is  questionable 
whether  he  can  bear  the  weight  of  such  a  host.  So  that  the  presumption 
is,  that  Virginia  will  reject  it.  1  know  nothing  of  the  dispositions  of  the 
States  south  of  this.  Should  it  fall  through,  as  is  possible,  .  .  it  is 
probable  that  Congress  will  propose  that  the  objections  being  once  known, 
another  Convention  shall  be  assembled.  ...  In  this  way,  union  may  be 
produced  under  a  happy  Constitution,  and  one  which  shall  not  be  too 
energetic." 

General  Washington,  to  James  Madison,  in  Congress,  Dec.  7,  1787. — 
"Mr  Dear  Sir, — Since  my  last  to  you,  I  have  been  favored  with  your 
letters  of  the  28th  of  October  and  18th  of  November.  With  the  last  came 
seven  numbers  of  the  Federalist,  under  the  signature  of  Publius,  for  which 
I  thank  you  They  are  forwarded  to  a  gentleman  in  Richmond  for  repub- 
lication ;  the  doing  of  which  in  this  State  will,  I  am  persuade!,  have  a 
good  effect ;  as  there  are  cert  unly  characters,  who  are  no  friends  to  a 
General  Government.  Perhaps  1  should  not  g>  too  far,  were  I  to  add, 
who  have  no  great  objection  to  the  introduction  of  anarchy  and  confusion. 

"  The  solicitude  to  discover  what  thes-veral  State  Legislatures  would  do 
with  the  Constitution,  is  now  transferred  to  the  several  Conventions. 
.  .  .  Nor.h  Carolina,  it  has  b^en  said  by  some  accounts  from  Rich- 
mond, will  be  governed  in  a  great  measure  by  the  conduct  of  Virginia. 

*  Few,  it  is  presumed,  need  to  be  told  at  this  day,  that  these  numbers  were 
written  by  Alexander  Hamilton,  John  Jay,  and  James  Madison. 

t  See  General  Washington's  letter,  October  18,  p.  70,  in  reply  to  one  from  Colouel 
Hamilton. 


ANCESTORS  WERE   GUIDED,   IN   1787,   '88,   '89.  73 

The  pride  of  South  Carolina  will  not,  I  conceive,  suffer  this  influence  to 
work  in  her  councils ;  and  the  disturbances  in  Georgia  will,  or  I  am 
mbtaken,  show  the  people  the  propriety  of  beim*  united,  and  the  necessity 
there  is  for  a  General  Government.  If  these,  with  the  States  eastward  and 
northward  of  us,  should  accede  to  the  Government,  I  think  the  citizens  of 
this  State  wiil  have  no  cause  to  bless  the  opponents  of  it  here,  if  they 
should  carry  their  point."  * 

Thomas  Jkfferson,  to  James  Madison,  Dec.  20,  1787.  **-  "  I  will  now  tell 
you  what  I  do  not  like  [in  the  proposed  Constitution].  First,  the  omission 
of  a  Bill  of  Rights.  ...  To  say,  as  Mr.  Wilson  does,  that  a  Bill  of 
Rights  is  not  necessary,  ...  is  opposed  by  strong  inferences  from  the 
body  of  the  instrument,  as  well  as  from  the  omission  of  the  clause  of  our 
prssent  Confederation,  which  had  made  the  reservation  in  express  terms. 
Let  me  add,  that  a  Bill  of  Rights  is  what  the  people  are  entitled  to  against 
every  Government  on  earth,  general  and  particular  ;  and  what  no  just 
Government  should  refuse  or"  rest  on  inference. 

*•  The  second  feature  I  dislike,  and  strongly  dislike,  is  the  abandonment 
in  every  instancs,  of  the  principle  of  rotation  in  office,  and  most  particularly 
in  the  case  of  the  President.  Reason  and  experience  tell  us  that  the  First 
Magistrate  will  always  be  re-elected,  if  he  may  be  re-elected.  He  is  then  an 
officer  for  life.  .  .  .  Smaller  objections  are  the  appeals  on  matters  of 
fact,  a*  well  as  law  ;  and  the  binding  all  persons,  Legislative,  Executive, 
and  Judiciary,  by  oath,  to  maintain  that  Constitution.  1  do  not  pretend 
to  decide  what  would  be  the  best  method  of  procuring  .  other  good  things  in 
this  Constitution,  and  of  getting  rid  of  the  bad.  Whether  by  adopting  it, 
in  hopes  of  future  amendment  ;  or,  after  it  shall  have  been  duly  canvassed 
by  the  people,  ...  to  say  to  them  ;  We  see  now  what  you  wish. 
.  .  ..  Ba  it  so.  Send  together  your  Deputies  again.  Let  them  estab- 
lish your  fundamental  rights  by  a  sacrosanct  declaration,  and  let  them  pass 
the  parts  of  the  Constitution  you  have  approved.  These  will  give  power 
to  your  Federal  Government  sufficient  for  your  happiness. 

'•  This  is  whatmiiiht  be  said,  and  would  probably  produce  a  speedy,  more 
pei feet,  and  more  permanent  form  of  Government."  f 

General  Washington,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  Feb.  7,  1788.  — 
You  appear  to  be,  as  might  be  expected  from  a  real  friend  to  this  country, 
anxiously  concerned  about  its  present  political  situation.  .  .  .  As  to 
my  sentiments  with  respect  to  the  merits  of  the  new  Constitution,  I  will 
disclose  them  without  reserve,  although  bypassing  through  the  post-offices 
they  should  become  known  to  all  the  world  ;  for  in  truth,  1  have  nothing  to 
conceal  on  that  subject. 

It  appears  to  me,  then,  little  short  of  a  miracle,  that  Delegates  from  so 
many  Scates.  different  from  each  other,  as  you  know,  in  their  manners, 
circumstances,  and  prejudices,  should  unite  in  forming  a  system  of  National 
Government  so  little  liable  to  well-founded  objections.  .  .  Nor  yet 
am  I  such  an  enthusiastic,  partial,   or  undiscriminating  admirer  of  it 

*  April  25th,  —  General  Washington  wrote  to  John  Armstrong  —  "  Baffled  in 
their  attacks  upon  the  Constitution,  they  have  attempted  to  vilify  and  debase  the 
characters  who  formed  it;  but  even  here  I  trust  they  will  not  succeed.  Upon  the 
whole,  I  doubt  whether  the  opposition  to  the  Constitution  will  not  ultimately 
be  proJuetive  of  more  good  than  evil.  It  has  called  forth  in  its  defence  abilities, 
which  would  not  perhaps  have  otherwise  existed.  ...  It  has  given 
the  rights  of  man  a  full  and  fair  discussion,  and  explained  in  so  clear  and  forcible 
a  manner,  as  cannot  fail  to  mike  a  listing  impression  upon  those  who  read  the 
last  publications  on  the  subject,  and  particularly  the  pieces  under  the  signature  of 
Publius.  There  will  be  a  greater  weight  of  abilities  opposed  to  the  System  in  the 
Convention  of  this  State  [Virginia],  than  there  has  been  in  any  other." 

t  Tho  nex*;  day,  Doc.  21,  Mr.  Jefferson  wrote  to  Colonel  E.  Carrington,  —  "  As  to  the 
new  Constitution,  I  find  myself  nearly  a  neutral;  "  and  referred  him  to  the  explanation 
in  the  above  letter  to  Mr.  Madiaon. 


74  FACTS   TO   GUIDE   AMERICANS   AS   THEIR 


as  not  to  perceive  it  is  tinctured  with  same  real,  though  not  radical, 
defects.  .  .  With  regard  to  the  two  great  points,  the  pivots  upon  which 
toe  whole  machine  must  move,  my  creed  is  simply,  — 

"  First,  that  the  General  Government  is  not  in  vested  with  more  powers 
than  are  indispensably  necessary  to  perform  the  functions  of  a  good  gov- 
ernraent,  and  consequently  no  objection  ought  to  be  made  against  the 
quantity  of  power  delegated  to  it. 

Secondly,  that  these  powers  —  as  the  appointment  of  all  rulers  will 
ever  arise  from,  and  at  sh  ;rt  stated  intervals  recur  to,  the  free  suffrage  of 
the  people — are  so  distributed  among  the  Legislative,  Executive,  and 
Judicial  branches,  into  which  the  General  Government  is  a. ranged,  that  it 
can  never  hi  in  danger  of  degenerating  into  a  monarchy,  an  oligarchy, 
an  aristocracy,  or  any  other  despotic  or  oppressive  form,  so  long  as  there 
shall  remain  any  virtue  in  the  body  of  the  people. 

"  I  would  not  be  understood,  my  dear  Marquis,  to  speak  of  consequences 
which  may  be  produced  in  the  revolution  of  ages,  by  corruption  of 
morals,  profligacy  of  manners,  and  listlessness  in  the  preservation  of  the 
natural  and  inalienable  rights  of  mankind,  .  .  as  these  are  contin- 
gencies against  which'  no  human  prudence  can  effectually  provide. 

"It  will  at  least  be  a  recommendation  to  the  proposeJ  Constitution, 
that  it  is  provided  with  more  checks  and  barriers  against  the  introduction 
of  tyranny,  and  those  of  a  nature  less  liable  to  be  surmounted,  than  any 
government  hitherto  instituted  among  mortals.  We  are  not  to  expect 
perfection  in  this  world.  .  .  Should  that  which  is  now  offered  to  the 
people  of  America  be  found,  on  experiment,  less  perfect  than  it  can  be 
made,  a  constitutional  door  is  left  open  for  its  amelioration. 

"  Some  respectable  characters  have  wished  that  the  States,  after  having 
pointed  out  whatever  alterations  and  amendments  mav  be  judged  necessary, 
would  appoint  another  Federal  Convention  to  modify  it  upon  those  sug- 
gestions. For  myself,  I  have  wondered  that  sensible  men  should  not  see 
the  impracticability  of  this  scheme.  The  members  would  go  fortified 
witli  sueh  instructions  that  nothing  but  discordant  ideas  could  prevail. 
Had  I  but  slightly  suspected,  at  the  time  when  the  late  Convention  was  in 
session,  that  another  Convention  would  not  be  likely  to  agree  upon  a 
better  form  of  government,  I  should  now  be  confirmed  in  the  fixed  belief 
that  they  would  not  be  able  to  agree  upon  any  system  whatever  ;  so  many, 

I  may  add,  such  contradictory  and  unfounded  objections  have  been  urged 
against  the  system  in  contemplation,  many  of  which  would  operate 
equaily  against  any  efficient  government  that  might  be  proposed.  1  will 
only  say,  as  a  further  opinion,  founded  on  the  maturest  deliberation,  that 
there  is  no  alternative,  no  hope  of  alteration,  no  resting-place,  between 
the  adoption  of  this,  and  a  recurrence  to  an  unqualified  state  of  anarchy, 
with  all  its  deplorable  consequences." 

Thomas  Jefferson,  to  A.  Donald,  Feb.  7,  1788.  —  "I  wish,  with  all 
my  soul,  that  the  nine  first  conventions  may  accept  the  new  Constitution. 
.  .  .  But  I  equally  wish  that  the  four  latest  conventions,  whichever 
they  be,  may  refuse  to  accede  to  it,  till  a  Declaration  of  Rights  be 
annexed.  .  .  By  a  Declaration  of  Rights,  I  mean  one  which  shall 
stipulate  freedom  of  religion,  freedom  of  the  press,  freedom  of  commerce 
against  monopolies,  Trial  by  Jury  in  all  cases,  no  suspension  of  the  habeas 
corpus,  no  standing  armies.  These  are  fetters  against  doing  evil  which  no 
honest  government  should  decline.  There  is  another  strong  feature  in 
the  new  Constitution,  which  I  as  strongly  dislike  ;  that  is  the  perpetual 
re-eligibility  of  the  President.  .  It  will  be  productive  of  cruel  distress  to 
our  country,  even  in  your  day  and  mine." 

General  Washington,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  April  28, 1788. — 

II  At  present,  or  under  our  existing  form  of  Confederation,  it  would  be 
idle  to  think  of  making  commercial  regulations  on  our  part.  One  State 
passes  a  prohibitory   law  respecting  some  article  ;  another  State  opens 


ANCESTORS  WERE   GUIDED,   IN  1787,   ;88,   '89.  75 

wide  the  avenue  for  its  admission.  One  Assembly  makes  a  system, 
another  Assembly  unmakes  it.  Virginia,  in  the  very  last  session  of  her 
Legislature,  was  about  to  pass  some  of  the  most  extravagant  and  preposte- 
rous edicts  on  the  subject  of  trade  that  ever  stained  the  leaves  of  a  legis- 
lative code.  It  is  in  vain  to  hope  for  a  remedy  of  these,  and  innumerable 
other  evils,  until  a  General  Government  shall  be  adopted. 

"  The  Conventions  of  six  States  only  have  as  yet  accepted  the  new  Con- 
stitution.    No  one  has  rejected  it. 

"  On  the  general  merits  of  this  proposed  Constitution  I  wrote  to  you 
some  time  ago  my  sentiments  pretty  freely.*  .  .  Although  it  is  not  to 
be  expected  that  every  individual  in  society  will  or  can  be  brought  to 
agree  upon  what  is  exactly  the  best  form  of  government,  yet  there  are 
many  things  in  the  Constitution  which  only  need  to  be  explained  in 
order  to  prove  equally  satisfactory  to  all  parties  For  example,  there  was 
not  a  member  of  the  Convention,  I  believe,  who  had  the  least  objection 
to  what  is  contended  for  by  the  advocates  for  a  Bill  of  Rights,  and  Trial 
by  Jury.  The  first,  where  the  people  evidently  retained  everything  which 
tiiey  did  not  in  express  terms  give  up,  was  considered  nugatory  ;  as  you 
will  find  to  have  been  more  fully  explained  by  Mr.  Wilson  and  others; 
and  as  to  the  second,  it  was  only  the  difficulty  of  establishing  a  mode 
which  should  not  interfere  with  the  fixed  modes  of  any  of  the  States,  that 
induced  the  Convention  to  leave  it  as  a  matter  of  future  adjustment. 

"  There  are  other  points  on  which  opinions  would  be  more  likely  to  vary. 
As,  for  instance,  on  the  ineligibility  of  the  same  person  for  President, 
after  he  should  have  served  a  certain  course  of  years.  Guarded  so  effect- 
ually as  the  proposed  Constitution  is,  in  respect  to  the  prevention  of 
bribery  and  undue  influence  in  the  choice  of  President,  I  confess  1  differ 
widely  myself  from  Mr.  Jefferson  and  you,  as  to  the  expediency  or 
necessity  of  rotation  in  that  appointment.  The  matter  was  fairly  discussed 
in  the  Convention,  and  to  my  full  conviction  ;  though  I  caunot  have  time 
or  room  to  sum  up  the  arguments  in  this  letter.  There  cannot,  in  my 
judgment,  be  the  least  danger  that  the  President  will,  by  any  practicable 
intrigue,  ever  be  able  to  continue  himself  one  moment  in  office,  much 
less  to  perpetuate  himself  in  it,  but  in  the  last  stage  of  corrupted  morals 
and  political  depravity  ;  and  even  then,  there  is  as  much  danger  that 
any  other  species  of  domination  would  prevail.  Though,  when  a  people 
shall  have  become  incapable  of  governing  themselves,  and  fit  for  a  master, 
it  is  of  little  consequence  from  what  quarter  he  comes.  Under  an  extended 
view  of  this  part  of  the  subject,  I  can  see  no  propriety  in  precluding  our- 
selves from  the  services  of  any  man  who,  in  some  great  emergency,  shall 
be  deemed  universally  most  capable  of  serving  the  public."  \ 

The  Convention  of  New  Hampshire  adopted  the  Constitu- 
tion, June  2lst,  and  that  of  Virginia,  June  25th. 

As  has  been  shown,  the  Constitution  had  at  length  been 
accepted  and  ratified  by  even  a  greater  number  of  States 
than,  by  its  provisions,  were  required  to  give  it  legitimate 

*  See  the  letter  of  February  7,  p.  73. 

t  In  a  letter  to  Lafayette,  June  18th,  General  Washington  said  : — "  In  a  letter  I  wrote 
you  a  few  days  ago  .  .  I  gave  you  the  state  of  politics  to  that  period.  Since  which 
the  Convention  of  South  Carolina  has  ratified  the  Constitution  by  a  great  majority.  That 
of  this  State  has  been  sitting  almost  three  weeks.  .  .  It  is  probable  the  m  ijority  will 
be  small,  let  it  fall  on  whichever  part  it  may.  I  am  inclined  to  believe  it  will  be  in 
favor  of  the  adoption.  Tho  Conventions  of  New  York  and  New  Hampshire  both  assem- 
ble this  week.  A  large  proportion  of  the  members,  with  the  Governor  at  their  head,  in 
the  former,  are  said  to  be  opposed  to  the  Government  in  contemplation.  New  Hamp- 
shire, it  is  thought,  will  adopt  it  without  much  hesitation  or  delay.  It  is  a  little  strange 
that  the  men  of  large  property  in  tho  South  should  bo  more  afraid  that  the  Constitution 
will  produce  an  aristocracy  or  a  monarchy,  than  tne  genuine  domocratical  people  of  the 
East.  Such  are  our  actual  prospects.  The  accession  of  one  State  more  will  completo  the 
number  which  by  the  constitutional  provision  will  be  sufficient,  in  the  first  instance,  to 
oarry  the  Government  into  efibot." 


76  FACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS   AS  THEIR 

force  and  effect.  It  was  thus  rendered  the  established  and 
permanent  form  of  Governaient,  to  be  observed  and  obeyed 
throughout  those  States. 

In  reference  to  that  exceedingly  important  event,  and  to 
other  favorable  indications  about  that  time,  General  Wash- 
ington, in  a  letter  to  General  Lincoln,  June  2dlh,  wrote  :  — 
"  No  one  can  rejoice  more  than  I  do,  at  every  step  the  people 
of  this  great  country  take  to  preserve  the  Union,  to  establish 
good  order  and  Government, and  to  render  the  Nation  happy 
at  home  and  respectable  abroad.  No  country  upon  earth 
ever  had  it  more  in  its  power  to  attain  these  blessings  than 
United  America. *' 

It  may  be  seen,  however,  that  the  prospect,  which  appeared 
then  so  encouraging,  was  of  short  duration. 

The  indirect  and  secret  course  assumed  by  the  opponents 
of  the  Constitution,  soon  excited  anxiety  and  solicitude 
nearly  or  quite  as  intense  as  had  been  experienced  before. 

General  Washington,  to  James  McHenry,  July  Zlst,  1788.  —  "  Dear  Sir, ' 
—  .  .  lam  less  likely  than  almost  any  person  to  have  been  informed  i»f  the 
circumstance  to  which  you  allude.*  That  some  of  the  leading  characters 
among  the  opponents  of  the  proposed  Government  have  not  laid  aside  their 
ideas  of  obtaining  great  and  essential  changes,  through  a  constitutional 
opposition,  as  they  term  it,  may  be  collected  from  their  public  speeches. 
That  others  will  use  more  secret  and  perhaps  insidious  means  to  prevent  its 
organization,  may  be  presumed  from  their  previous  conduct  on  the  subject. 
.  .  The  casual  information  received  from  visitants  at  my  house  would 
lead  me  to  expect  that  a  considerable  effort  will  be  made  to  procure  the 
election  of  anti-federalists  to  the  first  Congress,  in  order  to  bring  the 
subject  immediately  before  the  State  Legislatures,  to  open  an  extensive 
correspondence  between  the  minorities,  for  obtaining  alterations,  and,  in 
short,  to  undo  all  that  has  been  done. 

"  It  is  reported  that  a  respectable  neighbor  of  mine  has  said  the  Consti- 
tution cannot  be  carried  into  execution  without  great  amendments.  .  . 
I  think  there  will  be  great  reason  for  those  who  are  well  affected  to  the 
Government,  to  use  their  utmost  exertions  that  the  worthiest  citizens  may 
be  appointed  to  the  two  Houses  of  the  first  Congress.  .  .  For  much  will 
doubtless  depend  on  their  prudence  in  conducting  business  at  the  begin- 
ning, and  reconciling  discordant  dispositions  to  a  reasonable  acquies- 
cence with  candid  and  honest  measures. 

*'  1  earnestly  pray  that  the  Omnipotent  Being,  who  has  not  deserted  the 
cause  of  America  in  the  hour  of  its  extremest  hazard,  may  never  yield  so 
fair  a  heritage  of  freedom  a  prey  to  anarchy  or  despotism." 

Same,  to  General  Lincoln,  August  2&lh,  1788.  —  "  So  far  as  I  am  able  to 
learn,  federal  principles  are  gaining  ground  considerably.  .  .  I  will, 
however,  just  mention  that  there  are  suggestions  that  attempts  will  be 
made  to  procure  the  election  of  a  number  of  anti-feoVral  characters  to  the 
first  Congress,  in  order  to  embarrass  the  details  of  Government,  and  pro- 
duce premature  alterations  in  its  Constitution.  .  .  It  will  be  advisable, 
I  should  think,  for  the  federalists  to  be  on  their  guard,  so  far  as  not  to 
suffer  any  secret  machinations  to  prevail,  without  taking  measures  to  frus- 
trate them.  .  .  I  will  confess,  my  apprehension  is,  that  the  New  York 
circular  letter  is  intended  to  bring  on  a  General  Convention  at  too  early 

*  "  A  concerted  and  organized  combination  among  those  opposed  to  the  Constitution, 
in  different  parts  of  the  Union,  with  the  view  to  suspend  its  operation,  or  deioat  it  aito- 
gether" 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  77 

a  period,  and,  in  short,  by  referring  the  subject  to  the  Legislatures,  to  set 
eveiything  afloat  again.  I  wish  I  maybe  mistaken,  in  imagining  that  there 
are  persons  who,  upon  finding  they  could  not  carry  their  point  by  an  open 
attack  upon  the  Constitution,  have  some  sinister  designs,  to  be  silently 
effected,  if  possible.  But  I  trust  in  that  Providence,  which  has  saved  us 
in  six  troubles,  yea,  in  seven,  to  rescue  us  again  from  any  imminent 
though  unseen  dangers.  Nothing,  however,  on  our  part,  ought  to  be  left 
undone.  I  conceive  it  to  be  of  unspeakable  importance  that  whatever 
there  be  of  wisdom  and  prudence  and  patriotism  on  the  Continent, 
should  be  concentred  in  the  public  councils  at  the  outset." 

Same,  to  Colonel  Hamilton,  August  28M,  1788.  —  "Dear  Sir,  — I  have 
had  the  pleasure  to  receive  your  letter,  dated  the  13th,  accompanied  by 
one  to  General  Morgan. 

"As  the  perusal  of  the  political  papers  under  the  signature  of  Poblius 
has  afforded  me  great  satisfaction,  I  shall  certainly  consider  them  as 
claiming  a  most  distinguished  place  in  my  library.  I  have  read  every 
performance  which  has  been  printed,  on  one  side  and  the  other  of  the 
great  question  lately  agitated,  so  far  as  I  have  been  able  to  obtain  them  ; 
and,  without  an  unmeaning  compliment,  I  will  say,  that  I  have  seen  no 
other  so  well  calculated,  in  my  judgment,  to  produce  conviction  on  an 
unbiassed  mind,  as  the  production  of  your  triumvirate.  When  the  tran- 
sient circumstances  and  fugitive  performances  which  attended  this  crisis 
shall  have  disappeared,  that  work  will  merit  the  notice  of  posterity ; 
because  in  it  are  candidly  and  ably  discussed  the  principles  of  freedom 
and  the  topics  of  Government,  which  will  be  always  interesting  to  man- 
kind so  long  os  they  shall  be  connected  in  civil  society." 

"  The  circular  letter  from  your  Convention,  I  presume,  was  the  equiva- 
lent by  which  you  obtained  an  acquiescence  in  the  proposed  Constitution. 
.  .  1  am  not  very  well  satisfied  with  the  tendency  of  it  ;  yet  the  federal 
affairs  have  proceeded,  with  few  exceptions,  in  so  good  a  train,  that  I 
hope  the  political  machine  may  be  put  in  motion,  without  much  effort  or 
hazard  of  miscarrying.* 

"  On  the  delicate  subject  with  which  you  conclude  your  letter  I  can  say 
nothing,  because  the  event  alluded  to  may  never  happen,  and  because  .  . 
I  would  not  wish  to  conceal  my  prevailing  sentiment  from  you  ;  for  you 
know  me  well  enough,  my  good  sir,  to  be  persuaded  that  1  am  not  guilty 
of  affectation  when  I  tell  you,  that  it  is  my  great  and  sole  desire  to  live 
and  die  in  peace  and  retirement  on  my  own  farm.  .  .  Still  1  hope  1  shall 
always  possess  firmness  and  virtue  enough  to  maintain  what  1  consider 
the  most  enviable  of  titles,  the  character  of  an  honest  man,  as  well  as  prove 
what  I  desire  to  be  considered  in  reality,  that 

I  am,  with  great  sincerity  and  esteem,  dear  sir,  etc."f 

General  Washington,  to  Thomas  Jefferson,  Aug.  31st,  1788.  — "  The 
merits  and  defects  of  the  proposed  Constitution  have  been  largely  and 
ably  discussed.  .  .  I  can  say  there  are  scarcely  any  of  the  amendments 
which  have  been  suggested  to  which  I  have  much  objection,  except  that 

*  Concerning  the  circular  referred  to,  Mr.  Madison  wrote-.  — "You will  hare  seen  tha 
circular  letter  from  the  Convention  of  this  State  [New  York].  It  has  a  pestilent  ten- 
dency. If  an  early  General  Convention  cannot  be  parried,  it  is  seriously  to  be  feared, 
that  the  System  which  has  resisted  so  many  direct  attacks,  may  be  at  last  successfully 
undermined  by  its  enemies  "  — New  York.  Aug.  llth. 

'*  This  circular  letter  was  sent  by  the  Convention  of  New  York  to  the  Legislatures  of 
the  several  States,  recommending  that  a  new  General  Convention  should  be  called,  for 
ihe  purpose  of  taking  into  consideration  various  amendments  to  the  Constitution. 
The  Ass^mblj-  of  Virginia  convened  soon  afterwards,  and  adopted  strong  Resolutions  to 
the  same  effect,  and  sent  an  application  to  Congress,  and  a  circular  letter  to  tue  several 
States,  recommending  another  General  Convention." 

f  From  Colonel  Hamilton's  letter. —  "I  take  it  for  granted,  sir,  you  have  concluded 
to  comply  with  what  will  undoubtedly  be  the  general  call  of  your  country  in  relation  to 
the  new  Government.  You  will  permit  me  to  say,  that  it  is  indispensable  you  should 
lend  j  ourself  to  its  first  operations.  It  is  to  little  purpose  to  have  introduced  a  System, 
if  the  weightiest  infiueuce  is  not  given  to  its  firm  establishment  in  the  outset."— 
Awj.  13th. 


78  FACTS   TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS  AS  THEIR 


which  goes  to  the  prevention  of  direct  taxation.  And  that,  I  presume, 
will  be  more  strenuously  advocated  and  insisted  upon  hereafter  titan  any 
other.  I  had  indulged  the  expectation,  that  the  new  Government  would 
enable  those  entruste  1  with  its  administration,  to  do  justice  to  the  public 
creditors  and  retrieve  the  national  ehancter.  But  if  no  means  are  to  be 
employed  bat  requisitions,  that  expectation  was  vain,  and  we  may  as 
well  recur  to  the  old  Confederation.  If  the  System  can  be  put  in  oper- 
ation without  touching  much  the  pockets  of  the  people,  perhaps  it  may 
be  done;  but,  in  ray  judgment,  infinite  circumspection  and  prudence  are 
yet  necessary  in  the  experiment.  It  is  nearly  impossible  for  any  one  who 
has  not  been  on  the  spot,*  to  conceive  what  the  delicacy  and  danger  of  our 
situation  have  been.  Though  the  peril  is  not  past  entirely,  thank  God, 
the  prospect  is  somewhat  brightening." 

Same,  to  Henry  Lee,  in  Congress,  Sept.  22d,  1788.  —  "Your  observations 
on  the  solemnity  of  the  crisis  and  its  application  to  myself,  bring  before 
me  subjects  of  the  mo6t  momentous  and  interesting  nature. f  In  our 
endeavors  to  establish  a  new  General  Government,  the  contest,  Nationally 
considered,  seems  not  to  have  been  so  much  for  glory  as  [for]  existence. 
It  was  for  a  long  time  doubtful  whether  we  were  to  survive  as  an  indepen- 
dent Republic,  or  decline  from  our  federal  dignity  into  insignificant  and 
wretched  fragments  of  an  Empire.  The  adoption  of  the  Constitution  so 
extensively,  and  with  so  liberal  an  acquiescence  on  the  part  of  the  minori- 
ties in  general,  promised  the  former;  until  lately,  the  circular  letter  of 
New  York,  carried,  in  my  apprehension,  an  unfavorable,  if  not  an  insidious 
tendency  to  a  contrary  policy.  I  still  hope  for  the  best ;  but  before  you 
mentioned  it,  I  could  not  help  fearing  it  would  serve  as  a  standard,  to 
which  the  disaffected  might  resort.  It  is  now  evidently  the  part  of  all 
honest  men,  who  are  friends  of  the  new  Constitution,  to  endeavor  to  give 
it  a  chance  to  disclose  its  merits  and  defects,  by  carrying  it  fairly  into 
effect  in  the  first  instance.  For  it  is  to  be  apprehended,  that  by  an 
attempt  to  obtain  amendments  before  the  experiment  has  been  fairly  made, 
4  more  is  meant  than  meets  the  ear  ;  '  that  an  intention  is  concealed  to 
accomplish  slily  what  could  not  have  been  done  openly,  — to  undo  all  that 
has  been  done. 

If  .  .  a  kind  of  combination  is  forming  to  stifle  the  Government  in 
embryo,  it  is  a  hippy  circumstance  that  the  design  has  become  suspected. 
Preparations  should  be  the  sure  attendant  upon  forewarning.  Probably 
prudence,  wisdom,  and  patriotism,  were  never  more  essentially  necessary 
than  at  the  present  moment ;  and  so  far  as  it  can  be  done  in  an  irre- 
proachably direct  manner,  no  effort  ought  to  be  left  unassayed  'to  procure 
the  election  of  the  best  possible  characters  to  the  new  Congress.  On  their 
harmony,  deliberation,  and  decision,  everything  will  depend.     .     . 

"  The  principal  topic  of  your  letter  is  to  me  a  point  of  great  delicacy 
indeed,  insomuch  that  I  can  scarcely  without  impropriety  touch  upon  it.f 

*  An  expression  he  many  times  employed  in  the  Revolutionary  war,  with  reference 
to  the  pressing  exigencies  proceeding  from  a  similar  cause. 

t  From  Colonel  Lee's  letter.—  "My  dear  General,  — At  length  the  new  Government 
has  received  the- last  act  necessary  to  its  existence  This  day  Congress  passed  the  requi- 
site previous  arrangements.  The  first  Wednesday  in  January  tho  ratifying  States  are 
to  appoint  Electors;  on  the  first  Wednesday  in  February  the  President  is  to  be  chosen ; 
and  the  first  Wednesday  in  March  is  the  time,  and  this  city  [New  York]  the  place,  for 

commencing  proceedings The  solemnity  of  tho  moment,  and  its  application 

to  yourself,  has  fixed  my  mind  in  contemplations  of  a  public  and  personal  nature;  and 
I  feel  an  involuntary  impulse  which  I  cannot  resist,  of  communicating  without  reserve 
to  you  some  of  the  reflections  which  tho  hour  has  produced.  Solicitous  for  our  common 
happiness  as  a  people,  and  convinced,  as  I  continuo  to  be,  that  our  peace  and  prosperity 
depend  on  tho  proper  improvement  of  tho  present  period,  my  anxiety  is  extremo  that 
tho  new  Government  may  have  an  auspicious  beginning.  To  effect  thi?,  and  to  perpet- 
uate a  Nation  formed  under  your  auspices,  it  is  certain  thai;  again  you  will  be  called 
foith.  .  .  The  new  Government  .  .  must  encounter  .  many  difficulties.  Tho  obstacles 
to  its  harmonious  progress  wi1!  receive  additional  weight  and  inlluenca  from  tho  active 
and  enterprising  characters,  wh)  continue  to,  inflame  the  passions  and  systematize  tho 
measures  of  opposition.  Tho  circular  letter  from  this  btate  [New  York],  seems  to  be 
tho  standard  to  which  tho  various  minorities  will  repair  •  and,  if  they  should  succeed 
in  bringing  quickly  into  action  the  objects  of  that  letter,  new  and  serious  difficulties 
must  arise  which  Will  cross  and  may  destroy  the  Government  in  its  infancy."  —  New 
York,  Sept.  lOtk. 


ANCESTORS  WERE   GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,   '89.  79 

•  .  You  are  among  the  small  number  of  those  who  know  my  invincible 
attachment  to  domestic  life,  and  that  my  Bincerest  wish  is,  to  continue  in 
the  enjoyment  of  it  solely  until  my  final  hour.  .  .  Now  justice  to 
myself  and  tranquillity  of  conscience  require,  that  I  should  act  a  part,  if 
not  above  imputation,  at  least  capable  of  vindication.     .     . 

"  While  doing  what  my  conscience  informed  me  was  right,  as  it  re- 
spected my  God,  my  country,  and  myself,  I  could  despise  all  the  party 
clamor  and  unjust  censure,  which  might  be  expected   from  some,  whose 

Fersonal  enmity  might  be  occasioned  by  their  hostility  to  the  Government, 
am  concious  that  I  fear  alone  to  give  any  real  occasion  for  obloquy,  and 
that  I  do  not  dread  to  meet  with  unmerited  reproach.  And  certain  I  am, 
whensoever  I  shall  be  convinced  the  good  of  my  country  requires  my  repu- 
tation to  be  put  in  risk,  regard  for  my  own  fame  will  not  come  in  compe- 
tition with  an  object  of  so  much  magnitude.  .  .  To  say  more  would  be 
indiscreet.  .  .  You  will  perceive,  my  dear  Sir,  .  .  that  my  inclinations 
will  dispose  and  decide  me  to  remain  as  I  am,  unless  a  clear  and  insur- 
mountable conviction  should  be  impressed  on  my  mind,  that  some  very 
disagreeable  consequences  must,  in  all  human  probability,  result  from 
the  indulgence  of  my  wishes." 

Same,  to  Colonel  Hamilton,  Oct.  3d,  1788.  —  "In  acknowledging  the 
receipt  of  your  candid  and  kind  letter  by  the  last  post,  little  more  is 
incumbent  upon  me  than  to  thank  you  sincerely  for  the  frankness  with 
which  you  communicated  your  sentiments,  and  to  assure  you  that  the 
same  manly  tone  of  intercourse  will  always  be  more  than  barely  welcome  ; 
indeed,  it  will  be  highly  acceptable  to  me.  1  am  particularly  glad  in  the 
present  instance,  that  you  have  dealt  thus  freely  and  like  a  friend.*  .  . 
Situated  as  I  am,  I  could  hardly  bring  the  question  into  the  slightest 
discussion,  or  ask  an  opinion  even  in  the  most  confidential  manner,  with- 
out betraying,  in  my  judgment,  some  impropriety  of  conduct-  .  .  Now, 
if  I  am  not  grossly  deceived  in  myself,  I  should  unfeignedly  rejoice  in 
case  the  Electors,  by  giving  their  votes  in  favor  of  some  other  person, 
would  save  me  from  the  dreadful  dilemma  of  being  forced  to  accept  or 
refuse. 

"  If  that  may  not  be,  .  .  I  am  truly  solicitous  to  obtain  all  the 
previous  information,  which  the  circumstances  will  afford,  and  to  deter- 
mine (when  the  determination  can  with  propriety  be  no  longer  postponed) 
according  to  the  principles  of  right  reason  and  the  dictates  of  a  clear 
conscience,  without  too  great  a  reference  to  the  unforeseen  consequences 
which  may  affect  my  person  or  reputation.  Until  that  period,  I  may 
fairly  hold  myself  open  to  conviction  ;  though  I  allow  your  sentiments  to 
have  weight  in  them,  and  I  shall  not  pass  by  your  arguments  without 
giving  them  as  dispassionate  a  consideration  as  I  can  possibly  bestow.   .    . 

"  You  will,  I  am  well  assured,  believe  the  assertion,  though  1  have  little 
expectation  it  would  gain  credit  from  those  who  are  less  acquainted  with 
me,  that,  if  I  should  receive  the  appointment,  and  if  I  should  be  prevailed 
upon  to  accept  it,  the  acceptance  would  be  attended  with  more  diffi- 
dence and  reluctance  than  I  ever  experienced  before  in  my  life.    .     . 

*  Referring  to  the  reply  of  Colonel  Hamilton  to  remarks  in  General  Washington's 
preceding  letter  of  Aug,  23th,  p.  77.  The  following  is  an  abstract  of  that  reply  :  —  "I 
should  be  deeply  pained,  my  dear  Sir,  if  your  scruples  in  regard  to  a  cert ;  in  station 
should  be  matured  into  a  resolution  to  decline  it.    .    .   It  cannot  bo  considered  as  a  com- 

gliment,to  say  that  on  your  acceptance  of  the  office  of  President,  the  success  of  the  new 
overnment  in  its  commencement  may  materially  depend.  Your  agency  and  influence 
will  be  not  less  important  in  preserving  it  from  future  attacks  of  its  enomies,  th;m  they 
have  been  in  recommending  it  in  the  first  instance  to  tho  adoption  of  the  peoplo.  .  .  In 
a  matter  so  ess3ntial  to  the  well-being  of  society,  as  the  prosparlly  of  a  nowly  institu'ed 
Government,  a  citizen  of  so  much  consequence  as  yourself  to  its  success,  has  no  option 
but  to  lend  his  servicos  if  called  for.  .  .  Your  signature  to  tho  proposed  System  pledges 
your  judgment  for  its  being  such  an  ono  as  upon  tho  whole  was  worthy  of  tho  public 
approbation.  If  it  should  miscarry  (as  men  commonly  decide  from  success  or  tho  want 

of  it),  the  blamo  will  in  all  probability  bo  laid  upon  tho  System  itself 

"  I  will  only  add,  that  in  my  estimate  of  tho  matter,  that  [your]  aid  is  indispensable. 
.  .  I  flatter  myself  tho  frankness  with  which  I  havo  delivered  myself  will  not  be  dis- 
pleasing to  you.    It  has  been  prompted  by  motives  which  you  would  not  disapprove:" 


80  FACTS   TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS  AS  THEIR 

"  Bit  why  these  anticipations?  If  the  friends  to  the  Constitution  con- 
ceive that  my  Jidministering  it  will  be  the  means  of  its  acceleration  and 
strength,  is  it  improbable  that  the  adversaries  of  it  m  iy  not  ent  rtain 
the  same  iJeas,  and  of  course  make  it  an  object  of  opposition?  That  many 
of  this  description  will  become  Electors,  I  can  have  no  doubt,  any  more  than 
that  their  opposition  will  extend  to  any  character,  who,  from  whatever 
cause,  would  be  likely  to  thwart  their  measures.  It  might  be  in  politic 
in  them  to  make  this  declaration  previous  to  the  election  ;  but  I  shall  be 
out  in  my  c  >njectures  if  they  do  not  act  conformably  thereto,  and,  if 
the  seeding  moderation,  by  which  they  appear  to  be  accuated  at  present, 
is  either  more  or  less  than  a  finesse  to  luli  and  deceive.  Their  plan  of 
operations  is  systematized,  and  a  regular  intercourse,  I  have  much  reason 
to  believe,  between  the  leaders  of  it  in  the  several  States,  is  formed  to 
render  it  more  effectual."  * 

Ghneral  Washington,  to  General  Lincoln,  Oct.  267A,  1788.  — "As  the 
period  is  now  rapidly  approaching,  which  must  decide  the  fate  of  the  new 
Constitution,-  .  .  it  is  not  wonderful  that  we  should  all  feel  an  unusual 
degree  of  anxiety  on  the  occasion.  I  must  acknowledge  my  fears  have 
been  greatly  alarmed,  but  still  I  am  not  without  hopes.  IVim  the  tiood 
beginning  that  has  been  made  in  Pennsylvania,  a  State  from  which  much 
was  to  be  feared,  I  cannot  help  anticipating  well  of  the  others.  Tint  is 
to  say,  V  flatter  myself  a  majority  of  them  will  appoint  federal  members 
to  the  several  branches  of  the  new  Government.  .  .  There  will,  how- 
ever, be  no  reason  for  the  advocates  of  the  Constitution  to  relax  in  their 
exertions;  for,  if  they  should  be  lulled  into  security,  appointments  of 
anti-federal  men  may  probably  take  place,  and  the  consequences,  which 
you  so  justly  dread,  be  realised.  .  .  Perhaps  as  much  opposition,  or,  in 
other  words,  as  great  an  effort  for  early  amendments,  is  to  be  apprehended 
from  this  ctate  as  from  any  but  New  York 

"  I  would  willingly  pass  over  in  silence  that  part  of  your  letter  in 
which  you  mention  the  persons  who  are  candidates  for  the  two  tirst  offices 
in  the  Executive,  if  I  did  not  fear  the  omission  might  seem  to  betray  a 
want  of  confidence.  Motives  of  delicacy  have  prevented  me  hitherto  from 
conversing  or  writing  on  the  subject,  whenever  I  could  avoid  it  with 
decency.  .  .  1  must  reserve  to  myself  the  right  of  making  up  my  final 
decision  at  the  last  moment,  when  it  can  be  brought  into  one  view,  and 
when  the  expediency  or  inexpediency  of  a  refusal  can  be  more  judiciously 

determined  than  at  present If,  after  all,  I  should  conceive 

myselr  in  a  manner  constrained  to  accept,  I  call  Heaven  to  witness,  that 
this  very  act  would  be  the  greatest  sacrifice  of  my  personal  feelings  aid 
wishes,  that  ever  1  have  been  called  upon  to  make.  It  would  be  to  forego 
repose  and  domestic  enjoyment,  for  trouble,  perhaps  for  public  obloquy  ; 
for  1  should  consider  myself  as  entering  upon  an  unexplored  field,  envel- 
oped on  every  side  with  clouds  and  darkness."  f 

*  To  this  letter,  also,  Colonel  H^mi'ton  replied.  The  following  extract  from  his 
reply  indicates  no  change  in  his  sentiments  respecting  the  main  point  of  the  discus-ion: 
—  ''I  feel  a  conviction  that  you  will  finally  see  your  acceptance  to  be  indispensable. 
It  is  no  c  -mpliment  to  say,  tint  no  other  man  can  sufficiently  unite  the  public  opinion, 
or  can  give  the  requisite  weight  to  tho  office  in  the  commencement  of  tho  Government. 
These  considerations  appear  to  me  of  themselves  decisive.  I  am  not  sure  that  your 
refusal  would  not  throw  everything  into  confusion.  I  am  sure  it  would  have  the  worst 
effect  imaginable.  Indeed,  as  I  hinted  in  a  former  letter,  I  think  circumstances  leave 
no  option." 

f  From  General  Lincoln's  letter,  —  "The  information  which  your  Excellency  has 
received  respecting  the  machinations  of  the  anti-federal  characters,  appears,  from  what 
circulates  in  this  p  irt  of  the  country,  but  too  well  founded.  I  have  no  doubt  but  every 
exertion  will  be  made  to  introduce  into  the  new  (Jovernment,  in  the  first  instance, 
characters  unfriendly  to  those  parts  of  it,  which,  in  my  opinion,  are  its  brightest  orna- 
imnts  and  its  most  pr.ecious  jtwels.  To  this  they  will  be  induced  .  .  first,  with  a  view 
totally  to  change  the  nature  of  the  Government  immediately.  But,  should  they  fail  of 
that,  tbey  will  then  have  it  in  their  power  to  introduce  into  all  the  important  offices  in 
Government,  men  of  their  own  sentiments  ;  so  that  in  a  short  tnno.  by  their  influence, 
they  may  bring  about  that  change,  which  cannot  at  first  or  in  any  other  way  be  effected 
by  them.  .  .  There  novor  was  an  instance,  when  it  cmld  have  been  more  necessary 
to  call  into  exercise  tho  wisdom,  the  prudence,  and  the  patriotism,  of  the  United  States, 


1 1 

ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  81 


General  Washington,  to  TVilltam  Gordon,  in  England,  Dec.  23rf,  1788. 
—  "  The  prospect,  that  a  good  General  Government  will,  in  all  human 
probability,  be  s>on  established  in  America,  affords  me  more  substantial 
satisfaction  than  I  have  ever  before  derived  from  any  political  event  ; 
because  there  is  a  rational  ground  for  believing,  that  not  only  the  happi- 
ness of  my  own  countrymen,  but  that  of  mankind  in  general,  will  be  pro- 
moted by  it." 

Same,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  Jan.  2Qth,  1789.  — "  The  last 
letter,  which  I  had  the  pleasure  of  writing  to  you,  was  forwarded  by  Mr. 
Gouverneur  Morris.*  Since  his  departure  from  America,  .  .  the  minds 
of  men  have  not  been  in  a  stagnant  state  ;  but  patriotism,  instead  of 
faction,  has  generally  agitated  them.  .  .  The  choice  of  Senators, 
Representatives,  and  Electors,  which,  excepting  that  of  the  last  descrip- 
tion, took  place  at  different  times  in  the  different  States,  has  afforded 
abundant  topics  for  domestic  news  since  the  beginning;  of  Autumn.  .  As  I 
imagine  you  see  most  of  the  several  particulars  detailed  in  the  American 
Gazettes,  I  will  content  myself  with  only  saying,  that  the  elections  have 
been  hitherto  vastly  more  favorable  than  we  could  have  expected  ;  that 
federal  sentiments  seem  to  be  growing  with  uncommon  rapidity,  and  that 
this  increasing  unanimity  is  not  less  indicative  of  the  good  disposition 
than  of  the  good  sense  of  the  Americans.  Did  it  not  savor  so  much  of 
partiality  for  my  countrymen,  1  might  add,  that  I  cannot  help  flattering 
myself,  that  the  new.Congress,  on  account  of  the  self-created  respecta- 
bility and  various  talents  of  its  members,  will  not  be  inferior  to  any 
Assembly  in  the  world.  From  these,  and  some  other  circumstances,  I 
really  entertain  greater  hopes  that  America  will  not  finally  disappoint 
the  expectations  of  her  friends,  than  I  have  at  almost  any  former  period. 

than  it  will  be  in  the  important  transactions  of  appointing  the  Executive  and  Legislative 
brandies  of  the  new  Government.  For  the  first  impression  made  therein  will  probably 
give  a  tone  to  all  future  measures. 

u  We  are  happv  here  in  finding  it  to  be  the  unanimous  voice  of  this  rising  Empire, 
that  your  Excellency,  who  has  so  just  a  claim  to  the  merit  of  its  establishment,  should 
now  take  it  under  your  pr  -tection.  The  share  you  hold  in  the  affections  of  the  people, 
and  the  unlimited  confidence  they  place  in  your  integrity  and  judgment,  give  you  an 
elevated  stand  among  them,  which  no  other  man  can  or  probably  ever  will  command. 
These  things  must  insure  to  you  all  which  a  susceptible  mind  can  wLm, —  a  power  of  pro- 
moting in  the  highest  degree  the  happiness  of  a  virtuous  and  enlightened  country. 

"  But  will  not  these  verj'  important  considerations  alarm  those  anti-federal  characters 
before  mentioned?  .  .  .We  must  expect,  and  we  should  be  guarded  in  every  point 
to  prevent,  the  influence  of  the  intrigues  and  combinations  of  those,  who  wish  to  see 
every  thing  again  afloat.  They  will  endeavor,  as  one  of  the  most  probable  means  by 
which  they  may  effect  their  purpose,  to  prevont  your  acceptance  of  the  Presidency, 
your  election  they  cannot  hinder 

"  I  have,  my  dear  General,  thus  freely  written  from  the  fullest  conviction  of  duty, 
and  in  perfect  confidence  in  your  Excellency.  I  feel  myself  exceeding^  interested  to 
see  such  a  Government,  as  we  want  and  need,  established  without  loss  of  time,  ,  .  I 
hope  yet  to  live  an  I  enjoy  the  blessings  of  it.  .  .  I  wish  to  see  a  Government  in 
existence,  and  properly  administered,  that  I  may  not  suffer  the  sad  mortification,  which 
would  take  place,  if,  after  all  the  toils,  danger.',  andsufferings  of  a  longand  distressingwar, 
prosecuted  for  the  purpose  of  warding  off  an  impending  blow,  and  of  establishing  our 
country  in  those  rights  to  which  it  was  justly  entitled,  the  people  should,  from  any 
conduct  of  theirs,  lose  those  blessings,  to  secure  which,  was  the  sole  end  of  the  important 
struggle." 

*  It  is  doubtless  recollected  that  Mr.  Morris  was  one  of  the  most  active  and  influential 
members  of  the  Convention.  In  the  prosecution  of  business  engagements  with  Robert 
Morris  he  embarked  on  board  a  vessel  for  France,  Dec.  18£A,  178S,  and  was  absent  from 
the  United  States  ten  years.  In  a  letter  to  him,  Nov.  23fA,  prior  to  his  departure  for 
France,  General  Washington  wrote,  in  reference  to  one  previously  received  from  Mr. 
Morris, —  "As  to  what  you  hint  respecting  myself,  towards  the  close  of  your  letter, 
I  have  really  but  little  leisure  or  inclination  to  enter  on  the  discussion  of  a  subject  so 
unpleasant  to  me." 

Mr.  Morris  rejoined,  —  "  On  the  subject  which  has  closed  both  your  letter  and  mine, 
I  feel  too  much  not  to  say  something.  1  have  ever  thought  and  said,  that  you  must  be 
President.  No  other  man  can  fill  that  office.  No  other  man  can  draw  forth  the  abilities 
of  our  coun'ry  into  the  various  departments  of  civil  life.  You  alone  can  awe  the  inso- 
lence of  opposing  factions,  and  the  greater  insolence  of  assuming  adherents.  ,  .  You 
will  becomo  the  father  of  more  than  three  millions  of  children;  and  while  your  bosom 
glows  with  parental  tenderness,  in  t/ieirs,  or  at  least  a  majority  of  them,  you  will  excite 
the  duteous  sentiments  of  filial  affection.  .  .  I  form  my  conclusions  from  those  talents 
and  virtues,  whioh  the  world  believes,  and  your  friends  know  you  possess,"  —Philadelphia, 
Dec.  6th. 


82  PACTS  TO   GUIDE  AMERICANS,   AS  THEIR 

Still,  however,  in  such  a  fickle  state  of  existence  I  would  not  be  too 
sanguine.  .  .  lest  some  unforeseen  mischance  or  perverseness  should 
occasion  the  greater  mortification,  by  blasting  the  enjoyment  in  the  very 
bud. 

"  I  can  say  little  or  nothing  new,  in  consequence  of  the  repetition  of 
your  opinion,  on  the  expediency  there  will  be  for  my  accepting  the  office 
to  which  you  refer.  Your  sentiments,  indeed,  coincide  much  more  nearly 
with  those  of  my  other  friends  than  with  my  own  feelings.*  .  .  Should 
circumstances  render  it,  in  a  manner,  inevitably  necessary,  .  be  assured, 
my  dear  Sir,  I  shall  assume  the  task  with  the  most  unfeigned  reluctance, 
and  with  a  real  diffidence,  for  which  1  shall  probably  receive  no  credit 
from  the  world.  If  I  know  my  own  heart,  nothing  short  of  a  conviction 
of  duty  will  induce  me  again  to  take  an  active  part  in  public  affairs  ;  and 
in  that  case,  if  I  can  form  a  plan  for  my  own  conduct,  my  endeavors  shall 
be  unremittingly  exerted,  even  at  the  hazard  of  former  fame  or  present 
popularity,  to  extricate  my  country  from  the  embarrassments  in  which  it 
is  entangled  ;  .  .  and  to  establish  a  general  system  of  policy,  which, 
if  pursued,  will  ensure  permanent  felicity  to  the  Commonwealth.  1  think 
I  see  a  path  as  clear  and  as  direct  as  a  ray  of  light,  which  leads  to  the 
attainment  of  that  object.  Nothing  but  harmony,  honesty,  industry,  and 
frugality,  are  necessary  to  make  us  a  great  and  happy  people.  Happily, 
the  present  posture  of  affairs,  and  the  prevailing  disposition  of  my 
countrymen,  promise  to  co-operate  in  establishing  thoBe  four  great  and 
essential  pillars  of  public  felicity. 

"  While  you  are  quarrelling  among  yourselves  in  Europe  ;  while  one 
king  is  running  mad,  and  others  acting  as  if  they  were  already  so,  by 
cutting  the  throats  of  the  subjects  of  their  neighbors  ;  I  think  you  need 
not  doubt,  my  dear  Marquis,  that  we  shall  continue  in  tranquillity  here, 
and  that  population  will  be  progressive,  so  long  as  there  shall  continue 
to  be  so  many  easy  means  for  obtaining  a  subsistence,  and  so  ample  a 
field  for  the  exertion  of  talents  and  industry." 

To  Count  de  Rochambeau,  he  wrote,  on  the  same  day,  —  M  We  are  on 
the  point  of  seeing  the  completion  of  the  new  Government,  which,  by 
giving  motives  to  labor,  and  security  to  property,  cannot  fail  to  augment, 
beyond  all  former  example,  the  capital  stock,  that  is  to  say,  the  aggregate 
amount  of  property  in  the  country.  I  speak  with  the  more  confidence, 
because  so  many  of  the  elections  of  Senators  and  Representatives  to  Con- 
gress are  already  made,  that  there  is  the  best  reason  to  believe  the  wisdom, 
the  patriotism,  and  the  virtue,  of  America  will  be  conspicuously  concen- 
tred in  that  body." 

As  would  seem,  no  intelligent  reader  of  the  last  preceding 
thirteen  pages,  could  fail  to  believe  that  the  emphatic  expres- 
sions of  increased  hope  and  confidence  in  the  last  three  extracts, 
were  prompted  by  the  apparent  success  of  the  earnest  and 
indefatigable  endeavors  of  the  wisest  patriots  to  secure  a  fair 
trial  of  the  Constitution,  in  the  same  form  and  condition  iu 
which  it  was  sent  to  Congress  by  the  Convention. 

*  All  public  men,  who  enjoyed  opportunities  for  sufficiently  extended  observation 
and  experience,  appear  to  have  coincided  in  the  opiuion,  that  as  an  object  of  political 
necessity,  General  Washington  must  be  the  first  President.  Dr.  Franklin,  the  most  emi- 
nent among  them,  in  a  letter,  June  8tk,  1788,  wrote,—  "  General  Washington  is  the  man 
that  all  our  eyes  are  fixed  on  for  President,  and  what  little  influence  I  may  have  is 
devoted  to  him." 

Governor  Johnson,  of  Maryland,  wrote,  Oct.  lOtk,  —  "  We  cannot,  Sir,  do  without  you; 
and  I  and  thousands  more  can  explain  to  anybody  but  yourself  why  we  cannot  do  with- 
out you." 

In  consequence  of  the  omission  in  the  appropriate  place,  page  78,  where  Colonel 
Lee's  name  occurs,  it  seems  due  to  truth  to  mention  that  he  did  not  belong  to  the 
class  of  Lees  referred  to,  page  72;  but  was  distinguished  for  his  efficient  services 
as  a  cavalry  officer  during  the  Revolutionary  war,  and  was  a  steadfast  friend  of  the 
Constitution  and  of  the  policy  of  Washington.  —  Editob. 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,   IN   1787,  '88,  '89.  83 


COMMENCEMENT  OP  THE  NEW  GOVERNMENT. 


The    commencement  of   a   new    Government,   instituted 

BY   AND    FOR   AN    INTELLIGENT,    A   FREE,   AND   PROSPECTIVELY  A 

great  and  happy  people,  was  an  event  of  such  magnitude, 
and  so  obviously  of  immeasurable,  —  of  absolutely  vital  interest 
and  consequence  to  the  whole  and  every  part  of  the  Nation, 
that  some  important  facts,  viewed  in  their  connection  with 
it,  afford  another  illustration  of  the  degenerate  and  relaxed 
state  to  which,  as  has  been  repeatedly  shown,  public  sentiment 
had  at  that  period  been  reduced.  Concerning  those  facts,  an 
opinion  may  be  derived  from  the  following  description  in  the 
language  of  the  late  Chief  Justice  Marshall  :  —  * 

<4The  impotence  of  the  late  Government  [the  Confederation],  added  to 
the  dilatoriness  inseparable  from  its  perplexed  mode  of  proceeding  on  the 
public  business,  and  to  its  continu-ed  session,  had  produced  among  the 
members  of  Congress  such  an  habitual  disregard  of  punctuality  in  their 
attendance  on  that  body,  that,  although  the  new  Government  was  to  com- 
mence its  operations  on  the  4/ A  of  March,  1789,  a  House  of  Representa- 
tives was  not  formed  until  the  first,  nor  a  Senate  until  the  sixth,  day  of 
April. 

"  The  ceremonies  of  inauguration  having  been  adjusted  by  Congress,  the 
President  attended  in  the  Senate-chamber  on  the  30th  of  April,  in  order 
to  take,  in  the  presence  of  both  Houses,  the  oath  prescribed  by  the  Con- 
stitution. 

•  "  Having  taken  it  in  the  view  of  an  immense  concourse  of  people,  he 
delivered  the  address. ' ' 

Whether  or  not  the  favorable  results  anticipated  by  Gen- 
eral Washington,  and  by  a  majority  of  his  countrymen,  were 
realized  from  the  operations  of  the  new  Government  un- 
der his  administration,  may  be  inferred  from  the  following 
extracts  :  — 

In  a  letter  to  Gocverneur  Morris,  Oct.  13M,  1789,  President  Washington 
wrote  :  — "  That  the  national  Government  is  organized,  and,  as  far  as  my 
information  goes,  to  the  satisfaction  of  all  parties  ;  that  opposition  is 
either  no  more,  or  hides  its  head  ;  that  it  is  hoped  and  expected  it  will 
take  strong  root,  and  that  the  non-acceding  States  [North  Carolina  and 
Rhode  Island]  will  very  soon  become  members  of  the  Union." 

In  Mr.  Morris's  Reply,  dated  Paris,  Jan.  24th,  1790,  he  wrote  :  —  "It 
gave  me  very  sincere  pleasure  to  learn  fiom  you  the  good  tidings,  which 
\ou  communicated  respecting  our  new  form  of  Government.  .  .  I  have 
from  time  to  time  received  very  great  pleasure,  at  the  development  of  its 

*  Marshall's  Washington,  in  two  volumes,  vol.  2,  pp.  138,  146. 

A?  nearly  all  the  extracts  from  letters  of  Washington,  have  heon  taken  from  his 
Writings  In  twelve  volumes,  edited  by  the  late  Dr.  Sparks,  their  several  places  are 
indicated  by  their  dates. 

Likewieo  th.»so,  from  Mr.  Jefferson's  letters  in  his  Works  in  four  volumes,  are  indicated 
in  the  tamo  manner. 


84 


Erinciples  by  the  Legislature,  which  in  my  opinion  does  thera  the  greatest 
onor.  They  have  far,  very  far,  outgone  ray  expectations,  and  even  c  >me 
up,  not  only  to  my  hopes,  but  to  my  very  wishes.  .  .  I  hope  in  God, 
my  dear  Sir,  that  you  will  long  continue  to  preside,  and  that  not  on'y 
you,  but  all  who  succeed  y  >u,  may  be  assisted  by  counsellors  as  able  and 
honest,  as  those  who  now  fill  the  different  seats  in  Congress.  The  prospect 
of  public  felicity,  which  must  be  toe  result-,,  fills  my  bosom  with  delight. 

0  my  country,  how  happy  !  ddst  thou  but  know  thy  blessedness." 
President  Washingt  >n,to  Mrs.  Catharine  MacaulaY  Graham,  Jan.  9th, 

1700.  —  "  If,  after  all  my  humble  but  faithful  endeavors  to  advance  the 
felicity  of  my  country  and  mankind,  I  may  indulge  a  hope,  that  my 
labors  have  not  been  altogether  without  succoss,  it  will  be  the  only  real 
compensation  I  can  receive  in  the  closing  scenes  of  life. 

"  On  the  actual  situation  of  this  country  under  its  new  Government,  I 
will  make  a  few  remarks.  That  the  Government,  though  not  actually 
perfect,  is  one  of  the  best  in  the  world,  I  have  little  doubt.  ...  It 
was  indeed  next  to  a  miracle,  that  there  should  have  been  so  much  una- 
nimity in  points  of  so  greit  importance  among  such  a  number  of  citizens, 
bo  widely  scattered,  and  so  different  in  their  habits  in  many  respects,  as 
the  Americans  were.  Nor  are  the  growing  unanimity  and  increasing  good 
will  of  the  citizens  to  the  Government  less  remarkable,  than  [those] 
favorable  circumstances.  • 

"  So  far  as  we  have  gone  with  the  new  Government  (and  it  is  completely 
organized  and  in  operation),  we  have  had  greater  reason  than  the  mo-t 
sanguine  could  expect,  to  be  satisfied  with  its  success.  The  increase  of 
commerce  is  visible  in  every  port,  and  .the  number  of  new  manufactures 
introduced  in  one  year  is  astonishing.  I  have  larely  made  a  tour  through 
the  Eastern  States.  I  found  the  country  in  a  great  "decree  recovered  fro  n 
the  ravages  of  the  war  ;  the  towns  flourishing,  and  the  people  delighted 
with  a  Government  instituted  by  themselves,  and  for  their  own  good.  The 
eame  facts,  I  have  also  reason  to  believe  from  good  authority,  exist  in  the 
Southern  States. 

44  By  what  1  have  just  observed,  I  think  you  will  be  persuaded  that  the 
ill-boding  politicians,  who  prognosticated  that  America  never  would  enjoy 
any  fruits  from  her  Independence,  and  that  she  would  be  obliged  to 
have  recourse  to  foreign  power  for  protection,  have  at  least  been  mistaken. 

1  shall  sincerely  rejoice  to  see,  that  the,  American  Revolution  has  been 
productive  of  happy  consequences  on  both  sides  of  the  Atlantic." 

Same,  to  Charles  Pinckney,  of  S.C.,  Jan.  11//*,  1790.  —  "  My  late  tour 
through  the  Eastern  States  has  been  of  salutary  consequence  iri  confirming 
my  health.  I  have  likewise  had  an  opportunity  of  seeing  how  lar  the 
c ountry  has  recovered  from  the  ravages  of  the  war,  and  how  well  the 
inhabitants  are  disposed  to  support  the  General  Government." 

Same,  to  the  Marquis  de  la  Luzerne,  April  29th,  1790.  —  "I  am  much 
pleased  with  the  interest  you  take  in  our  national  reputation  ;  nnd  the 
information  you  give,  that  our  credit  is  becoming  respectable  in  Europe, 
under  the  influence  of  our  new  Government." 

Same,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  June  3d,  1790.  —  "  You  have 
doubtless  been  informed,  from  time  to  time,  of  the  happy  progress  of  our 
affairs.  The  principal  difficulties  which  oppose  themselves  in  any  shape 
to  the  prosperous  execution  of  our  Government,  seem  in  a  great  measure  to 
have  been  surmounted.     A  goo<l  temper  prevails  among  our  citizens.     .     . 

"Our  Government  is  now  happily  came  1  into  operation.  Although  botdtj 
thorny  questions  still  remain,  it  is  to  be  hope  1  that  the  wisdom  of  thfy*n 
concerned  in  the  national  Legislature  will  dispose  of  them  prudently.  A 
funding  system  is  one  of  the  subjects  which  occasions  most  anxiety  nnd 
perplexity.  Yet  our  revenues  have  been  considerably  more  productive 
than  it  wis  imagined  they  woi  I d  be  .  .  Our  trade  to  she  East  Iiuii  s 
flourishes.  The  profits  to  individuals  are  so  considerable  as  to  induce  more 
persons  to  engage  in  it  continually." 


ANCESTORS  WERE  GUIDED,  IN  1787,  '88,  '89.  85 

Same,  to  David  Stewart,  June  \5th,  1790. — "  Our  reputation  has  risen  in 
every  part  of  the  globe  ;  and  our  credit,  especially  in  Holland,  where  our 
funds  are  above  par.  lias  got  higher  than  that  of  any  nation  in  Europe,  as 
appears  by  official  advices  just  received."  * 

Same,  to  Thomas  Marshall  [of  Kentucky],  Feb.  6th,  1791.  —  "I  never 
doubted  that  the  operations  of  this  Government,  if  not  perverted  by 
prejudice  or  evil  designs,  would  inspire  the  citizens  of  America  with  such 
confidence  in  it,  as  effectually  to  do  away  those  apprehensions,  which, 
under  the  former,  our  best  men  entertained  of  divisions  among  ourselves, 
or  allurements  from  other  nations.  I  am  therefore  happy  to  find  that  such 
a  disposition  prevails  in  your  part  of  the  country,  as  to  remove  any  idea 
of  that  evil,  which  a  few  years  ago  you  so  much  dreaded." 

Same,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  March  19th,  1791.  —  "  Our  country, 
my  dear  Sir  (and  it  is  truly  yours),  is  fast  advancing  in  its  political  im- 
portance and  social  happiness.  .  .  The  laws  of  the  United  States,  adapted 
to  the  public  exigencies,  are  framed  with  wisdom,  and  acquiesced  in  with 
cheei  fulness.  The  administration  of  them,  aided  by  the  affectionate  par- 
tiality of  my  countrymen,  is  attended  with  no  unnecessary  inconvenience, 
and  every  circumstance  is  auspicious  to  your  fellow-citizens  in  this  section 
of  the  globe." 

Same,  to  Mrs.  Catharine  Macaulat  Graham,|  July  19th,  1791. — "  I  shall 
only  further  add,  what  I  know  will  give  you  pleasure,  that  the  United 
States  enjoy  a  scene  of  prosperity  and  tranquillity  under  the  new  Govern- 
ment, that  Gould  hardly  have  been  hoped  for  under  the  old  ;  and  that, 
while  you,  in  Europe,  are  troubled  with  war  and  rumors  of  war,  every  one 
here  ujay  bit  under  his  own  vine,  and  none  to  molest  or  make  him  afraid." 

Same,  to  David  Humphreys,  July  20th,  1791.  —  "  Each  day's  experience 
of  the  Government,  of  the  Unrted  States  seems  to  confirm  its  establishment, 
and  to  render  it  more  popular.  A  ready  acquiescence  in  the  laws  made 
under  it,  si.ows  in  u  strong  light  the  confidence  which  the  people  have  in 
their  Representatives,  and  in  the  upright  views  of  those  who  administer 
the  Government.  .  .  Our  public  credit  stands  on  that  ground,  which 
three  years  a^o  it  would  have  been  a  species  of  madness  to  have  foretold. 
The  astonishing  rapidity  with  which  the  newly  instituted  bank  was 
filled,  gives  an  unexampled  proof  of  the  resources  of  our  countrymen,  and 
their  confidence  in  public  measures.  On  the  first  day  of  opening  the 
subscription,  the  whole  number  of  shares  (twenty  thousand)  were  taken 
up  in  one  hour,  an  1  application  made  for  upwards  of  four  thousand  more 
than  were  granted  by  the  institution,  besides  many  others  that  were  coming 
in  from  different  quarters."  J 

Same,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  July  28th,  1791.  — "  On  the  sixth  of 
this  month  I  returned  from  a  tour  through  the  Southern  States.  .  .  In 
the  course  of  this  journey,  1  have  been  highly  gratified  in  observing  the 
flourishing  state  of  the  country,  and  the  good  dispositions  of  the  people. 
Industry  and  economy  have  become  very  fashionable  in  those  parts,  which 
were  formerly  noted  for  the  opposite  qualities.  The  attachment  of  all 
classes  of  citizens  to  the  General  Government  seems  to  be  a  pleasing 
pres  ge  of  th<  ir  future  happiness  and  respectability- 

"  The  complete  establishment  of  our  puMic  credit  is  a  strong  mark  of 
the  confidence  of  the  people,  in  the  virtue  of  their  Representatives,  and  the 

*  Previous  to  the  new  Government,  claims  against  the  United  States  had  depreciated 

to  one  oightli  of  their  nominal  value. 

t  This  letter  was  not  received  by  Mrs.  Graham.    Sho  died,  June  22nd,  1791. 

tile  wrote  to  Count  de  Moustier,  Sept.  5th.—  ''The  favorable  sentiments  which  you 
express  of  our  eou  itry  and  its  councils  are  very  agroeablo  to  me. 

"  You  will  learn  with  pleasure,  that  events  have  realized  tho  most  sanguine  hopesof 
Mfjotia/1  prosperity.  Tho  imiuoncoof  tho  General  Government  has  extended  to  every 
♦elation  oi  political  improvement,  and  to  the  promotion  of  our  social  happiness." 


86  PACTS  TO  GUIDE  AMEBIC ANS,   ETC. 


wisdom  of  their  measures.  .  .  This  contrast  between  the  situation  of 
the  people  of  the  United  States  and  those  of  Europe,  is  too  striking  to  be 
passed  over,  even  by  the  most  superficial  observer.  .  .  But  we  do  not 
wish  to  be  the  only  people,  who  may  taste  the  sweets  of  an  equal  and  good 
Government.  We  look  with  an  anxious  eye  to  the  time  when  happiness 
and  tranquillity  shall  prevail  in  your  country,  and  when  all  Europe  shall 
be  freed  from  commotions,  tumults  and  alarms." 

Same,  to  Gouverneur  Morris,  July  28th,  1791.  —  "Dear  Sir,  —  The 
communications  ia  your  several  letters,  relative  to  the  state  of  affairs  in 
Europe,  are  very  gratefully  received.     .     . 

**  The  change  of  systems,  which  have  so  long  prevailed  in  Europe,  will 
undoubtedly  affect  us  in  a  degree  proportioned  to  oar  political  or  commer- 
cial connections  with  the  several  nations  of  it.  .  .  The  present  moment 
seems  pregnant  with  great  events.  .  .  That  a  change  there  will  be 
favorable  to  this  country,  I  have  no  doubt.  For  under  the  former  system 
we  were  seen  either  in  the  distresses  of  war,  or  viewed  after  the  peaee  in  a 
most  unfavorable  light  through  the  medium  of  our  distracted  state.  In 
neither  point  could  we  appear  of  much  consequence  among  nations.  .  . 
A  change  of  system  will  open  a  new  view  of  things,  and  we  shall  then 
burst  upon  them,  as  it  were,  with  redouiled  advantages.     .     . 

44  In  my  late  tour  through  the  Southern  States,  I  experienced  great 
satisfaction  in  seeing  the  good  effects  of  the  General  Government  in  that 
part  of  the  Union.  The  people  at  large  have  felt  the  security  which  it 
gives,  and  the  equal  justice  which  it  administers  to  them.  The  farmer, 
the  merchant,  and  the  mechanic,  have  seen  their  several  interests  attended 
to,  and  thence  they  unite  in  placing  a  confidence  in  their  Representatives, 
as  well  as  in  those  in  whose  hands  the  execution  of  the  laws  is  placed. 
Industry  has  there  taken  place  of  idleness,  and  economy,  of  dissipation. 
.  .  The  establishment  of  public  credit  is  an  immense  point  gained  in 
our  national  concerns.  This,  I  believe,  exceeds  the  expectation  of  the  most 
sanguine  among  us." 

Same,  to  the  Marquis  de  Lafayette,  June  10M,  1792.  —  "  The  affairs 
of  the  United  States  still  go  on  in  a  prosperous  train.  We  increase  daily 
in  numbers  and  riches,  and  the  people  are  blessed  with  the  enjoyment  of 
those  rights,  which  alone  can  give  security  and  happiness  to  a  Nation." 

After  seeing  how  essential  interests  are  affected  by  the  nature 
of  a  Government  resting  on  the  Ballot,  who  can  doubt  the  need 
of  regarding  the  distinctive  nature  of  that  system  of  Government 
called  the  Confederation,  whose  results  are  shown  in  pp.  11-14, 
and  often  declared  in  the  Convention,  and  of  then  noticing  the 
perfect  contrast  between  those  results  and  the  true  developments 
from  the  unperverted  operations  of  the  new  System  called  the 
Constitution,  as  these  developments  are  seen  through  the  extracts 
in  pp.  83-86  ? 

If  any  one,  who  has  learned  these  opposite  lessons  from  the 
Fathers,  will  add  the  teachings  derivable  from  his  past  and 
present  observations  of  public  affairs,  and  from  the  contents  of  the 
pages  in  this  Work  complete,  he  may  be  able  to  judge  with  much 
confidence,  whether  there  is  now,  or  ever  has  been  since  the 
beginning  of  the  Union,  as  strong  a  tendency  to  a  possibly 
dangerous  consolidation,  as  to  a  probably  entire  and  final  destruc- 
tion of  all  the  great  interests,  and  consequently  of  the  long-cherished 
hopes  and  expectations,  of  United  America.  In  this  connection  is 
suggested  the  Inquiiy,  —  By  whose  agencies  and  influences  was 
National  Liberty  gained,  and,  afterward,  so  far  regulated  and 
secured  as  to  have  been  defended  and  preserved  to  the  present  time  1 


tf 


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